Bella Ramsey: ‘My Body Type Isn’t That’ Like Ellie in The Last of Us

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As a passionate film buff, I was utterly captivated by Bella Ramsey’s portrayal of Ellie in the series. Critics and her fellow cast members were left spellbound by her performance. However, it’s not all sunshine and roses. Despite delivering an exceptional performance, she’s had to confront criticism and even trolling from certain individuals who believe she doesn’t embody the Ellie from the games visually enough.

During their training period, Ramsey was thoroughly acquainted with the fact that they would eventually take center stage, stepping into the role left vacant by others. They honed their skills in boxing, martial arts, and weightlifting to face the physical hardships Ellie was compelled to endure. This training had an unexpected impact on them.

Ramsey expressed, “It was amazing to feel so capable,” but he found himself becoming overly focused on how Ellie appears in the game, particularly her physique and muscular definition in her arms. Unfortunately, he didn’t resemble that image, as his body type differs.

Fortunately, they were able to benefit from the presence of Craig Mazin, a co-creator of “The Last of Us“. As Ramsey explained, he discussed this topic extensively with Craig, and “he never imposed that expectation on me”. Instead, Craig encouraged Ramsey to appear and feel strong, which was reflected in his demeanor, his stance, and the self-assuredness he exuded. It was a struggle for Ramsey to accept that he didn’t have to look like a computer-generated character.

Regrettably, some individuals were fixated on Ellie from Ramsey’s series not resembling the computer-generated version, and they expressed their discontent by sharing harsh memes across social media platforms. Fortunately, Ramsey had already deactivated those accounts prior to this incident. According to the Hollywood Reporter, they mentioned that they had always planned to deactivate their account and weren’t particularly fond of social media in the first place. They didn’t make a big fuss about it, but there was a part of them thinking about the show returning for Season 2. If they simply avoid Twitter and Reddit now, as they are doing, everything should be just fine.

Kaitlyn Dever’s Abby Also Doesn’t Look Like Her Game Counterpart

It’s not just Ramsey who deviates from her game character’s appearance; there are differences too in her physique compared to game version Abby. This was discussed by co-creator Neil Druckmann regarding casting choices back in February.

He mentioned that finding someone as talented as Kaitlyn for the role was quite a challenge, he said. In the story, they needed both characters, Ellie and Abby, to be portrayed distinctly. Specifically, Ellie’s character was intended to move more subtly, while Abby was meant to resemble Joel in her ability to handle situations physically, much like a forceful figure. This dynamic isn’t as crucial in this adaptation because there are fewer intense action scenes compared to other versions of the story. Instead, it focuses more on the emotional drama. However, it’s important to note that there is still action present; it’s simply approached differently due to changes in priorities.

Druckmann added, “It’s crucial to find someone who truly embodies the spirit of these characters… We place less emphasis on whether they physically resemble the characters with specific features like eyebrows, nose, or body shape. These aspects are not our primary concern; there are other factors we prioritize more highly.” This is something worth considering for anyone criticizing Ramsey based on appearances.

The Last of Us is streaming on Max.

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2025-04-22 20:37