THE FUTURE
BREAKING THROUGH
Bella Ramsey on The Last of Us, writing a “scary” movie and BAFTA recognition: “It’s been a year of change”
Words Jamie Tabberer
SUPPORTED BY CLIFFORD CHANCE Careers
Photography Vivek Vadoliya
‘It feels like it’s a point of no return,” says Bella Ramsey of their extraordinary year, in which they played Ellie, the heart and soul of 2023 TV hit, apocalyptic sci-fi series The Last of Us.
Indeed, while the 20-year-old made their screen debut in Game of Thrones back in 2016, their starring role alongside Pedro Pascal last year feels like a new arrival of sorts. “It’s quite scary in that regard,” admits the star in an exclusive interview carried out late last year. “Realising this was going to change my life in some amazing ways — and ways that are a bit more complicated.”
Capping off an amazing chapter, Bella has been announced as part of BAFTA’s 2023 Breakthrough UK programme, which spotlights and supports creatives in British TV, film and gaming as they start out. Successful Breakthroughs, which previously included Jessie Buckley and Florence Pugh, receive voting membership of BAFTA for a year and free access to BAFTA events. “Little me would’ve found this quite cool!” laughs Bella, who uses they/ them pronouns, and whose other screen credits include Time and The Worst Witch.
Here, to mark the occasion, the aspiring director talked to Attitude about the “spooky” movie they’re writing (“it centres around mental health”) and why they “can’t wait” to film season two of The Last of Us…
How does it feel to be part of BAFTA’s
Breakthrough programme for 2023?
It’s a huge honour. It’s something I’ve known about for ages and applied to several times before. So, it’s really cool to be accepted and be on the list with phenomenal people.
How does it feel to be recognised as one of a diverse cohort of talent, as opposed to one of five competing for an award?
It’s so lovely. I love the range of people that get recognised: people right at the beginning of their careers, people [far] into their careers. At the photoshoot, I met people I’d never normally bump into. For it not to be a competition is so lovely. Everyone can chill and celebrate each other, without any underlying politics.