‘The Last of Us’ TV adaptation writer vows to keep Ellie gay

The writer of the upcoming TV adaptation of The Last of Us has promised that the video game’s main character Ellie will remain gay on the series.

The 2013 action adventure game is currently being turned into a TV series by HBO, and writer and producer Craig Mazin has vowed that the show will not shy away from exploring Ellie’s sexuality onscreen.

Responding to a fan on Twitter who urged HBO to “keep the gay gay”, Maizin allayed any residual fears of a ‘straight-washed’ TV version of the character, replying: “You have my word”.

You have my word.

— Craig Mazin (@clmazin) March 5, 2020

The original version of The Last of Us, which ranks as one of the biggest-selling video games of all time, charted 14-year-old Ellie’s journey across a post-apocalyptic United States which has been ravaged by a parasitie fungus which turns humans into cannibalistic creatures.

The character’s sexual orientation was first explicitly addressed in 2014 spin-off The Last of Us: Left Behind, where she was seen sharing a kiss with her friend Riley.

In 2018, the game’s original writer Halley Gross confirming that Ellie was “born gay”, adding: “That’s just who she is.”

As well as the TV adaptation, which HBO has promised is “coming soon”, an eagerly anticipated video game sequel, The Last of Us Part II, is set for release on 29 May.

Gross previously confirmed that the upcoming game will continue to explore Ellie’s sexuality, saying: “To explore who she is as a teenager and as an adult, it wouldn’t be honouring her character to hide some facet of herself.

“We want to engage with her as a full character.”