Bella Ramsey’s Dark Turn in Episode 5 Scared Even ‘The Last of Us’ Creators
The Last of Us’ latest episode sees the first breaking point of Ellie’s revenge quest as she keeps looking for Abby in the now war-ridden Seattle, also providing a major character shift. Here’s what the HBO show’s co-creator Craig Mazin has to say about the most eerie scene of the episode.
Things have finally started moving forward for Ellie in The Last of Us’ episode 5 that brings her one step closer to finding Abby.
Still haunted by Joel’s death, Bella Ramsey’s character has a perfect excuse for her own contribution to the cycle of violence, and not many might opt for Abby’s side at this point anyway.
However, with a major change in Ellie’s character in the latest episode, The Last of Us has seemingly paved the way for her eventual realisation of how things should really be done.
So far Ellie is yet to make more attempts to reach her goal, but the start of this path was a pretty intimidating experience — even for the show’s creators as well.
Ellie’s Scary Character Change in The Last of Us Episode 5, Explained by Neil Druckmann
It’s fair to say the show’s sophomore season has hit pretty hard every single one of us, but Ellie’s case is exceptional — to the point when her determination to have Abby killed shook even the HBO series’ showrunner Craig Mazin.
The scene in particular sees Ellie encountering Abby’s friend Nora and chasing her down to the hospital’s basement where she would later torture her for some information about Abby’s whereabouts.
“In that moment, in that hallway [with Nora], [director] Stephen Williams and Bella and I discussed how this would challenge an audience because I think we all innately love Ellie and root for Ellie in part because Ellie is the protagonist — but not here. No, not here. She does turn away from Jesse and Dina. She does this horrible thing — the look on her face and the way she transforms in that scene. I was scared of her, and I didn't like her, and I didn't want her to do what she's doing”, Mazin revealed in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.
He then added that Bella Ramsey’s brilliantly terrifying performance eventually led to the actor getting a pretty weird, but specific nickname.
“Tim Good — the editor of that episode — and I referred to Bella in that scene as ‘baby shark’ because there’s something about her eyes that are so dark and dead. There’s this ferocity there that Bella can create. This is so far from what we saw just an episode earlier with her and Dina celebrating love and new life”, Mazin said.
There’s More to Ellie’s Shocking Plot Twists in The Last of Us Season 2
While the show’s ongoing second instalment is just one episode away from its finale coming to Max on May 25, Craig Mazin suggests fans better be prepared for something not less disturbing than what we all saw in episode 5.
“Just as Abby started to slip away from her stated reasons, we can see Ellie slipping away from her stated reasons. This is no longer rational. This is not the last time the season that Ellie is going to do something where we feel like, ‘We can’t go on that walk with you kid’”, Mazin stated.
When Is The Last of Us Next Episode Coming?
The second season’s episodes 6 and 7 will air on Max on May 18 and May 25 respectively.
