After the shocking season two finale of The Last of Us where the fate of Ellie has been left up in the air, star of the critically acclaimed and GLAAD Media Award-winning HBO series Bella Ramsey is the cover model of the Pride Month issue of Them.
Ramsey had an in-depth conversation with Them writer Peyton Dix about many topics including the impact of the queer narrative in The Last of Us.
“That’s what I think is so brilliant about [Ellie’s queerness] is how intricately and beautifully it’s woven into the very fabric of the story,” Ramsey says, noting that the show appeals to “audiences who normally wouldn’t watch a queer story if it was just that.”
They continued later in the interview: “I’d seen an article about Dina and Ellie’s kiss in the second game being the first lesbian kiss in a video game or something. Their relationship was my first introduction to the world of The Last of Us. It was really special to get to play that out with Isabela Merced.”
Ramsey also opens up about their queerness and autism diagnosis amidst skyrocketing to Last of Us superstardom.
“For acting, I’m picking up the nuances of people’s faces and their emotions, the things that they say and how they say them, and what sort of emotional feeling is feeding into that eye twitch or that mouth movement,” they explain. “That stuff I’ve absorbed like a sponge, and have all this knowledge of what it’s like to be different people just by watching them.”
They added, “I’m trying to fix my view and see it as a way to amplify this thing that we did and that we’re proud of. It’s an ever-evolving relationship that I have with the press.”
In a time when the U.S. is being faced with tons of anti-LGBTQIA legislation, we often forget that this type of rhetoric is impacting the entire globe including the U.K. Ramsey says it’s “very real and very scary.”
“I went to the Midwest for the first time this year and had anxiety about being an openly queer person in states that are quite conservative,” said Ramsey.
Still, Ramsey maintains hope and sees the the endless possibilities and freedom they’ve found in the gaming community “When you get to choose a girl character or a boy character, I would pick the boy one because I could…Gaming is such an amazing place to explore,” they said. “I think there is often a narrative of it not being a safe space, and in some cases, yes, but in so many others, it is such a free and open space.”
They also find solace in allies like her co-star, Pedro Pascal. “He is someone that I talk to about stuff like that,” they gush. “He has been so kind and generous and supportive. He’s a real champion of the LGBTQ+ community.”
“Performative allyship is a thing, and he is so the opposite of that,” they continue. “At his core, [advocacy] is something that he cares so much about and has been so supportive of me in a way that I’m incredibly grateful for.”
The Last of Us was renewed ahead of the season 2 finale but there hasn’t been word yet on when we will see season 3. For the time being, Ramsey told Them that they want to tackle new kinds of roles. “I’ve never played a nonbinary person in anything or a trans person. Getting to do that would feel very special.”
“I want to be challenged,” they said, “continually challenged.”
View the full Them article here.
