HBO’s The Last of Us Season 2 kicked things off in a big way by introducing a cast of brand new characters, with the likes of Abby (Kaitlyn Dever), Jesse (Young Mazino), and Dina (Isabella Merced) making their debuts. But the latest episode, “Through the Valley,” presented quite the devastating blow to the series as Pedro Pascal’s Joel met his end, something gamers have been waiting on for years now. As a result, Bella Ramsey’s Ellie will have to take the reins from here on out. Prior to the new season, some fans of the games expressed concerns aimed at Ellie’s depiction in the live-action television series, and they’ve already tasted their own medicine.
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When the post-apocalyptic show first aired back in 2022, viewers got a look at Bella Ramsey’s performance as the rebellious youngster. Previously brought to life by Ashley Johnson in The Last of Us Part I and II, Ramsey brought a newfound sense of duality in their performance that was met with acclaim from critics and fans. However, criticism was sparked over the fact that the Game of Thrones actor wasn’t embodying the toughness and physicality that The Last of Us players visualized the character to be. While a backlash of this sort doesn’t hold much weight within the overall performance of an actor, with Bella having been nominated for multiple Best Drama Actress awards, it seems that Craig Mazin has taken it into his own hands to address the issue head-on in the series.
The Last of Us Season 2 Tackles Ellie’s Physicality
During Episode 1, “Future Days,” we find ourselves in Jackson, Wyoming, five years after the events of The Last of Us Season 1 finale, which saw Joel eliminate several Fireflies to save Ellie’s life. While Joel has been Ellie’s protector, things kick off with Ellie, now 19 years old, practicing martial arts with a resident. Her opponent has done some damage to her, as she boasts a busted nose, but her resilience is witnessed as she pins her opponent to the ground. Jesse enters the barn and tells the man to “go easy” on her per Joel’s orders. Ellie doesn’t take this lightly as she demands that Joel be overprotective of her, and that she wants to be independent.
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With a new tough exterior surrounding Ellie, the criticisms targeting the physicality are seemingly denounced. To match this, Ramsey told GameRant in a recent interview that her preparation for Season 2 consisted of two months of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, combat training, and boxing. The resilience demonstrated within the first few minutes of Episode 1 is only a taste of what comes next within the The Last of Us series, as Ellie sets her course of revenge against Abby and the WLF in Seattle. She’ll no doubt have encounters where this skillset will come in handy.
Given the intensity of Ramsey’s performance in just two episodes alone, we can only imagine the skills the actor will depict as Ellie throughout the rest of the season, just proving that many more critics wrong.
New episodes of The Last of Us air Sundays at 9 PM ET on HBO and MAX.
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