The Last of Us TV show has cast Game of Thrones alum Bella Ramsey to star as Ellie, The Hollywood Reporter reports. Following news of the young actor's casting, it was reported that Pedro Pascal will play Joel in the series.
While this marks a major development in the upcoming HBO series based on Naughty Dog's award-winning zombie survival PS4 game, THR shut down other reports that suggested former True Detective star Mahershala Ali had been offered the role of Joel opposite Ramsey. Ali was reportedly interested in the role but never reached a deal with HBO to cement his casting.
Ramsey played the fierce-beyond-her-stature Lyanna Mormont in HBO's Game of Thrones - you'll remember her for brutally rebuking Jon Snow's request for soldiers to assist in the Battle of the Bastards but eventually relenting and supplying a whopping 62 men. Her standout performance as Lady Lyanna earned her mainstream recognition that belied the small amount of screen time her character had in the series.
With Ramsey leading as arguably the story's most important character, the Last of Us TV show cast is off to a great start. And behind the scenes, things are just as promising. HBO is yet again working with Chernobyl's Craig Mazin to run the show alongside The Last of Us director Neil Druckmann, and Mazin had these tantalizing words to say about the project in an interview with the BBC: "In this case, I'm doing it with [Neil Druckmann], and so the changes that we're making are designed to fill things out and expand, not to undo, but rather to enhance."
In the same interview, he added that the TV series will include a moment not in the games that will make our jaws drop.
It probably won't come as a surprise that Ellie will be joined by Joel in The Last of Us TV show, but Druckmann has also confirmed the cast of characters to include Ellie's close friend Riley, Joel's accomplice Tess, Fireflies leader Marlene, and Maria, the wife of Joel's brother Tommy.
