The Last of Us has everything: horror, gore, romance and humour. But it would be nothing without Ellie.
Before HBO adapted The Last of Us into a critically acclaimed television show that has taken the world by storm faster than its fungal disease cordyceps, game developer Naughty Dog released the story as a fully playable action adventure/survival-horror game on the PlayStation in 2013.
The game swept its award season, as did its 2020 sequel, The Last of Us: Part Two, with each garnering multiple game of the year awards and mentions for the cast performances, sound design and storytelling.
Both games and the subsequent TV adaptation sprinkle visceral heartbreak and guttural horror amidst fleeting moments of hope, depicting a world in which the ones left behind – if they’re not ravaged by a fungal infection – spend their lives fighting for survival.
And in the eye of the storm, with the wind whipping her hair as she meets you with a scowl (and an expletive and open flick-knife), is one of the best TV characters of all time: Ellie Williams.