The Last Of Us May Have Just Introduced Ellie's Future Girlfriend, Dina
This post contains spoilers for HBO's "The Last of Us" and the video game series of the same name.
The latest episode of "The Last Of Us" is the most emotional thus far. Finally, Joel (Pedro Padcal) and Ellie (Bella Ramsey) have done the difficult work of tearing down their walls and addressing the emotionally wrought elephant in the room: their journey together is so much bigger than carting cargo across the country for Fireflies. They genuinely care about each other, and there's no point pretending they don't. In "Kin," they finally confront that connection and consider the future; Ellie wonders if her blood will successfully produce a cure; after suffering panic attacks, Joel fears he won't be able to protect her; Ellie worries that she'll once again be abandoned by a person she trusts; and Joel is haunted by the ghost of his daughter. It's the kind of episode that asks big, difficult questions, and coming off all of that pain, fans took to social media to ask the most important question of all: Was that Dina?!
Let's be real, Joel and Elle breaking our hearts is just a Sunday night guarantee — but what's wholly unexpected is an easter egg from "The Last of Us Part II," offering a glimpse of Ellie's future girlfriend, Dina.
While chowing down in the commune cantine with Joel, Maria, and Tommy, Ellie catches the eye of a mysterious girl, half-hiding behind a column. "What?" Ellie all but growls at the girl, who immediately scurries away. We never formally meet the girl, but Maria tries to calm Ellie by explaining, "She was just curious. Kids around here don't usually look or talk like you." Maria makes a solid point. But some eagle-eyed viewers suspect that this isn't the only reason the camera lingered on the Staring Girl.
Who is the staring girl?
Below are mild spoilers for "The Last of Us Part II."
As fans of the Naughty Dog game series already know, a young woman named Dina will have a crucial role to play in the show's second season. After years of growing up together at the Jackson Commune, sparks will fly between Ellie and Dina, who kickstart a romance just before tragedy strikes their lives. Propelled by a quest for vengeance, the two then set out on a journey across the country: and thus, we have a new traveling duo.
Though Dina isn't technically introduced until the sequel, the series has laid the foundation for that to change. Unlike in the game, by the time Ellie and Joel arrive in Jackson, the community is already well-established — which means that Dina, among others, is already present. So who's to say the staring girl isn't her? There's just that one brief scene with nothing to truly confirm Dina's identity: but her clothes, long dark hair, and interest in Ellie were more than enough to catch fans' attention. And the fact that the camera gives her any time at all speaks volumes. So almost immediately after the episode aired on HBO, "Was the Dina" started trending on Twitter.
Is all of this just wishful thinking? Maybe. When asked, co-showrunner Craig Mazin refused to confirm that the staring girl is Dina on the "Last of Us" companion podcast, but his teasing response did add fuel to the fire. "It's ambiguous," Mazin told host Troy Baker. "Somebody's staring at Ellie. I wonder who that could be, theoretically or not. We'll find out, maybe one day."
The start of a beautiful relationship
Craig Mazin's fellow showrunner Neil Druckmann (the creator of the original games) also stoked the flames of speculation, pointing out that "there is a story about the first time Dina met Ellie that is very similar to what happens here." Mazin responded by keeping things cryptic: "That doesn't mean that that's Dina, but it doesn't mean it's not."
In a cute moment from "The Last of Us Part II," Ellie and Dina recount their reactions to arriving in Jackson. Dina admits that she was "overwhelmed by all the people," while Ellie was "overwhelmed by all the food." She adds, "I remember my first week just gorging myself. Stuffing food in all my pockets like it was gonna run out." Hilariously, Dina recalls this too. She remembers seeing Ellie and wondering, "Who's this string bean girl stealing all the jerky?" That's not exactly what goes down in the episode, but it's pretty damn close. Ellie is stuffing her face with a warm meal, while Staring Girl (played by Paolina van Kleef) looks on from a distance.
As someone familiar with the games, watching this adaptation of "The Last Of Us" has been especially rewarding. Since they have the roadmap of "Part II" already established, Mazin and Druckmann are taking extra special care to lay track for the future. It's clear in big thematic ways — like each traumatic encounter doing damage to Ellie's psyche — but also in smaller moments, like spending more time in Jackson. It's even there in what seem like throwaway lines, like Joel's dream of raising sheep at a farmhouse — a detail sure to punch game players right in the gut.
So there's good reason to believe that this is yet another example of planting seeds for the future.