Fans of The Last of Us have no shortage of things to be excited about with The Last of Us 2 on its way in May and the newly announced HBO television show which will adapt the events of the first game. In a recent tweet, Neil Druckmann, writer of both the game and the upcoming TV show, listed off several of the franchise’s strong, female characters, but left one entry blank. This not only confirms that Riley will be in the TLOU TV show, but also teases fans with a degree of mystery. Whoever this mystery character is seems to have a four letter first name, and clearly belongs in the list with the other female characters, and many fans want to know both who this is and why she was omitted.
For those unaware, March 8th was International Women’s Day, and this holiday prompted HBO to share a video celebrating the many female characters on their network. In response to this video, Druckmann shared the below tweet, claiming that HBO can now add characters from The Last of Us like Ellie, Riley, Tess, Marlene, Maria, and some mystery character to their long list of great female characters. This name must have been omitted for a reason, and there are a few characters within the game series which fit here already
Dina
Perhaps the most obvious conclusion fans could draw from this information is that Dina will somehow be included in the story of The Last of Us. While this certainly isn’t too far-fetched, it does present some interesting ramifications. If Dina, Ellie’s love interest in The Last of Us 2, is in fact in the television show, that would indicate that Druckmann and HBO may explore more than just the events of the game, including characters and plot points from the sequel in order to give people ike a Dina a more fleshed out backstory.
Anna
Anna is Ellie’s late mother, and although she is not seen in the game, she is mentioned several times by Marlene in audio logs found throughout the final level. This may make more sense than Dina’s inclusion, as portraying Anna in the TV show still draws from information found exclusively in The Last of Us and would help to explain Ellie’s history better. Not much is known about Anna except that she was a nurse before the outbreak and that she died shortly after giving birth to Ellie. Either way, some more information on this character would be more than welcome.
A New The Last of Us Character
Finally, it is also possible that the character which was omitted is a completely original character created for the television show, or even someone from The Last of Us 2 whose name has not yet been revealed. Who this character would be and in what way she would further the story is uncertain, but Druckmann’s skill in story telling has been proven in the past, so there is little need to worry. It also could be that the number of blank spaces was not intentionally four and that the missing character was Joel’s daughter, Sarah, but if that were the case what would be the point of blurring it out?
Any of these characters would be good fits to round out the list and fill in the mystery spot since both Dina and Anna have four letter names and are strong-willed women in their own right. It is great to see Druckmann and HBO celebrating women through creating strong characters, sharing posts such as these, and reassuring fans that the TV show won’t change Ellie’s sexuality. Between this and the upcoming sequel, hype for The Last of Us has never been so high.
The Last of Us 2 releases May 29th and the television show is in the works.
