HBO's The Last of Us TV series casts Game of Thrones star Bella Ramsey as Ellie. With a reputation as one of the best video games of the 21st century, it didn't take long for The Last of Us to be eyed for a live-action adaptation. After years of wondering if it would happen, HBO confirmed in 2020 that a TV show based on the popular Naughty Dog game was in development. The news came in the lead up to The Last of Us Part II's release, which proved to be incredibly successful, even if the story was a bit divisive amongst gamers.
As soon as HBO announced plans to make The Last of Us as a TV show, fans of the games once again began speculating who could play the lead roles. The first game follows Joel and Ellie as they travel across the country in the hope of helping humanity create a cure for the global infection. With Chernobyl showrunner Craig Mazin developing the series for HBO, many began to wonder if other veterans from HBO's wide library of content could be pulled into The Last of Us next. And now that has proven to be the case with the casting of Ellie.
According to THR, Bella Ramsey has landed the lead role of Ellie in The Last of Us. Ramsey is best known for her breakout role on HBO's hit series Game of Thrones, where she played the fan-favorite character Lyanna Mormont. Now, she'll play Ellie in The Last of Us, who could hold the key to finding a cure after being immune to the mutated fungus. The 17-year-old actress has also had roles in HBO's His Dark Materials show and Judy. The Last of Us writer/director Neil Druckmann confirmed the news on Twitter.
Now that Ramsey is aboard HBO's The Last of Us as Ellie, she becomes the first cast member attached to the series. This should give the Game of Thrones actress a chance to break out even more too. As one of the two main characters in The Last of Us, Ramsey will be at the forefront of the upcoming HBO show instead of a recurring supporting character as she was in Game of Thrones. While she is now set to lead the series, THR notes that Mahershala Ali will not have a role in the series despite recent internet rumors getting the hopes of fans up that he might appear.
In any case, the casting of Ramsey as Ellie in The Last of Us could be the beginning of a wave of announcements about the show. Fans will continue to wait for news about who will play Joel opposite Ramsey's Ellie, but her Game of Thrones history could make many hope that Nikolaj Coster-Waldau is in the running to star too. There's no word on when filming will begin, but the first major casting announcement and news of a new director for the pilot could indicate that The Last of Us will be in production before too long.
Source: THR