‘The Last of Us’ Spoilers: Why Is Ellie So Important?
The Last of Us finally premiered on HBO and HBO Max on Sunday, introducing protagonists Joel (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and the Cordyceps brain infection. The first episode reveals that Joel must smuggle Ellie across the post-apocalyptic U.S. because she’s an important asset to the Fireflies. But why is Ellie important in The Last of Us? We’ll find out soon enough in the TV series, but for those who can’t wait, here’s some insight from the video games.
[Spoiler alert: The following story contains minor spoilers for The Last of Us game, and therefore might spoil storylines in The Last of Us TV series on HBO.]
HBO’s ‘The Last of Us’ premiere introduces Ellie, an important person in the Fireflies’ mission
In the year 2033 — 20 years after Outbreak Day and the death of Joel’s daughter, Sarah (Nico Parker) — Joel is living as a smuggler in a quarantine zone (QZ) in Boston. He and his partner, Tess (Anna Torv), make an arrangement with Marlene (Merle Dandridge), the leader of a rebel group known as the Fireflies, to smuggle Ellie across the country.
Marlene reveals to Ellie that she was friends with Ellie’s mom, Anna, who died at Ellie’s birth. She promised to keep Ellie safe. Additionally, Marlene tells Joel and Tess that Ellie is important, but she doesn’t really explain why. Tess and Joel agree to take Ellie and wait until nightfall to escape the QZ, which is controlled by an oppressive government force known as FEDRA.
Later that night, Joel, Tess, and Ellie make it to the outskirts of the QZ, but they run into a FEDRA soldier. He orders them to get on their knees while he scans for the infection in each of them. Tess and Joel are clear, but Ellie panics and stabs the soldier in the leg before he can scan her. Joel then pounces on the soldier and beats him.
Meanwhile, Tess scans Ellie and realizes she’s infected. Ellie quickly defends herself, saying she’s had the infection for weeks but hasn’t turned into a ravenous creature like all the other infected in the world. They hear alarms blaring and continue their escape as the episode ends.
Why is Ellie important in ‘The Last of Us’?
So, what exactly is going on with Ellie in The Last of Us and why is she important? As the story goes in the game, she’s immune to the Cordyceps infection. In any other case, the fungus would take over the brain of the infected after a few days. However, Ellie’s infection never develops past a rash on her arm.
That’s where the Fireflies come in. Their mission is to combat FEDRA to make the QZ’s a better place to live (although they mostly just blow things up). Additionally, the Fireflies have labs where they attempt to find a cure for the infection. When Marlene learns of Ellie’s immunity, she realizes Ellie could be the key to developing a vaccine. Therefore, she needs Joel to get Ellie to the lab on the west coast. We’ll stop the explanation there to avoid spoiling their entire journey, but it’s quite a ride.
Why is Ellie immune? This is still technically a mystery
The exact reason for Ellie’s immunity is never really explained in The Last of Us games. In the first game, she reveals how she was infected — presumably, this will also be revealed in the TV series. However, her immunity is a mystery.
Fans have shared theories on this, including one that suggests Ellie’s mother was infected just days before Ellie’s birth. It’s likely that she is just a rare case of immunity due to a mutation in the Cordyceps infection that entered her body. Hopefully, HBO’s The Last of Us will provide some more insight.
New episodes of The Last of Us drop every Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max. Check out the full release schedule for more details.
