Ashley Johnson – Ellie (The Last of Us)
Naughty Dog is responsible for some of gaming’s most celebrated and relatable characters of all time, as even non-gamers known who Crash Bandicoot and Nathan Drake are at this point.
Around the start of the last decade though, the developers created one of the most compelling characters in entertainment with Ellie in The Last of Us.
Introduced after the first time skip, Ellie is an angsty teenager, born into an apocalyptic world filled with death and sadness. As the game goes on, she displays a lot of depth, showing of plenty of wits, as well as an exuberant, adorable innocence in scenes like where she sees giraffes for the first time.
Throughout The Last of Us, players get to see Ellie grow, evolving from a temperamental, foul-mouthed kid Joel needs to protect to a clever woman he ends up depending on.
Her character’s growth can be credited to actor Ashley Johnson, who gives a ranged performance as Ellie, showing that her hardship and character have been shaped by the difficult world she’s been forced to grow up in.
