It was an armchair diagnosis.
“The Last of Us” star Bella Ramsey, 21, revealed in an interview with British Vogue that she has been diagnosed with autism – all because of a crew member on “The Last of Us” set.
“I’ve spoken a bit about neurodivergence before, but I always for some reason didn’t want to say what it was. I got diagnosed with autism when I was filming season one of ‘The Last of Us,’” said Ramsey, who is nonbinary but has previously said on social media, “I’m good with any [pronouns].”
The former “Game of Thrones” star said that a “Last of Us” crew member with an autistic daughter assumed Ramsey shared the condition. This pushed Ramsey into getting a formal psychiatric evaluation.
The actor said she felt like a “weirdo” and a “loner” and had “always wondered” if she had autism, since she also had a “painful hyperawareness of other people’s micro-expressions and body language.”
Along with Pedro Pascal, 49, Ramsey stars in the hit HBO adaptation of the popular video game franchise. “The Last of Us” is a dystopian story created by Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, after a pandemic has devastated humanity with a fungal infection. Infected people turn into zombie-like creatures, and society has collapsed.
Joel (Pascal), a gruff survivor, gets tasked with escorting and protecting Ellie (Ramsey), who seems mysteriously immune to the disease.
Pascal and Ramsey both also had memorable roles in “Game of Thrones” before “The Last of Us,” but they weren’t in the former show together. Pascal played the swaggering suave prince Oberyn Martell, who only appeared in Season 4, while Ramsey played the tough child noblewoman / head of House Mormont, who appeared in Seasons 5 through 8.
During a 2023 interview, Pascal joked that his costumes were more comfortable than Ramsey’s.
“My experience with ‘Game of Thrones’ was incredibly romantic,” he told EW.
“My costume was probably a lot more comfortable than Bella’s, and the locations I shot in might have been much more comfortable. But she was young enough to deal with an uncomfortable costume, I think.”
Ramsey told British Vogue about having autism, “I’ve always been watching and learning from people. Having to learn more manually how to socialise and interact with the people around me has helped me with acting.”
Ramsey said being on set helps her focus on a daily routine. “I have a call time, and I’m told what to wear, how to stand, where to stand and what to eat.”
Finally getting a diagnosis was “freeing,” she added.
“It enables me to walk through the world with more grace towards myself about not being able to do the easy everyday tasks that everyone else seems to be able to do.”
“The Last of Us” returns for Season 2 April 13 at 9 p.m. on HBO.
