Craig Mazin, showrunner on HBO's The Last of Us TV adaptation, has commented on concerns about Bella Ramsey's appearance in the upcoming Season 2.
Ramsey (21) has a very youthful appearance, which worked rather well for playing a 14-year-old Ellie in The Last of Us Season 1. However, fans have been worried that, despite the character being five years older in Season 2, Ramsey hasn't changed as much as Ellie does across the two games, looking too young to play the part.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Mazin acknowledges this, but doesn't really agree.
"So I understand the difficulty that some people have where they say, 'She looked like she was 14 in season one. She still looks roughly the same to us, even though now she’s 19'," Mazin says. "Ellie in the game looks much older. Some people do change quite dramatically and some people don’t."
Mazin says he's "not interested in the physical aspect", but adds that he's "been looking at Bella’s face for years while editing, and I can see that she’s certainly grown".
Rather than focus on physical appearance, he says he's "interested in the emotional maturity, and the change in personality".
Mazin says he's "watched Bella grow and become independent and start to find her own two feet separate and apart from her parents", asking questions of herself like "how do I figure out how to be my own person now and test that full independence?"
When it comes to Ramsey's performance in Season 2, he says he "[feels] that in Ellie completely" and thinks people are "going to see the difference".
The new season debuts on 13th April, running for seven episodes. Are you excited to watch? Tell us in the comments section below.
