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Did The Last Of Us Just Introduce Ellie’s Future Girlfriend Dina?
Here’s why fans are convinced we just got an important sapphic tease.
If you were distracted by all the emotional moments in episode six of The Last Of Us and missed what may have been a huge tease for season two, we don’t blame you. Thankfully, some fans familiar with the game’s sequel caught a brief moment that has them convinced that one very important (and queer) plotline is headed our way in season two (of the already renewed) hit HBO series.
Spoilers for The Last of Us Part Two and potential spoilers for season two of the series follow.
There’s a brief moment while Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Joel (the internet’s daddy, Pedro Pascal) are eating in a dining hall in Jackson, Wyoming after Joel and his brother Tommy (Gabriel Luna) are reunited. Ellie catches sight of a girl about her age staring at her from behind a column. That would normally not be a big deal, except, as some on social media were quick to point out, she looks a whole lot like the character Dina from the video game, who will play a pivotal (and romantic) role in Ellie’s life.
\u201cFor anyone that doubts this isn't Dina!\n\n#TheLastOfUs\u201d— DomTheBomb (@DomTheBomb) 1676865769
Not only does the actor look like Dina, but her appearance fits into canon. In the game, the two talk about the first time they met and how Ellie was overwhelmed by the food and gorging herself when she first came to Jackson. In the show, the mystery girl first sees Ellie when she’s doing just that.
\u201cremember when dina told ellie she saw her stealing all the food when she first arrived in jackson and now look at their first time seeing other THIS IS SO \ud83d\ude2d\ud83d\ude2d #thelastofus\u201d— joel miller defender tlou era (@joel miller defender tlou era) 1676872135
While the girl, who is simply credited as “Staring Girl” (Paolina van Kleef), hasn’t been confirmed as actually being Dina, the co-showrunner Craig Mazin isn’t exactly shutting down the speculation either — if anything he’s slyly confirming it. “It’s ambiguous. Someone’s staring at Ellie… I wonder who that could be, or not – we’ll find out one day,” he told The Last of Us Podcast.
Executive producer Neil Druckman also added fuel to the fire saying, “In Part Two, there is a story about the first time Dina met Ellie that is very similar to what happens here…”
Mazin added cryptically, “That doesn’t mean that that’s Dina, but it doesn’t mean it’s not.”
Without getting too far into spoiler territory, Dina’s appearance is a big deal as she is one of the most important characters in the game's sequel, and her love story with Ellie is one of the few bright spots in the dark and heartbreaking story ahead.
Rachel Shatto, Editor in Chief of PRIDE.com, is an SF Bay Area-based writer, podcaster, and former editor of Curve magazine, where she honed her passion for writing about social justice and sex (and their frequent intersection). Her work has appeared on Dread Central, Elite Daily, Tecca, and Joystiq. She's a GALECA member and she podcasts regularly about horror on the Zombie Grrlz Horror Podcast Network. She can’t live without cats, vintage style, video games, drag queens, or the Oxford comma.
Rachel Shatto, Editor in Chief of PRIDE.com, is an SF Bay Area-based writer, podcaster, and former editor of Curve magazine, where she honed her passion for writing about social justice and sex (and their frequent intersection). Her work has appeared on Dread Central, Elite Daily, Tecca, and Joystiq. She's a GALECA member and she podcasts regularly about horror on the Zombie Grrlz Horror Podcast Network. She can’t live without cats, vintage style, video games, drag queens, or the Oxford comma.
