Bella Ramsey is getting real about the challenges they faced filming The Last of Us season 2.
The actor, 21, opened up about how filming season 2 of the hit HBO series took a toll on them. Because the latest installment of the video game adaptation takes place in extreme environments, Ramsey told The Hollywood Reporter they were often “cold, wet and muddy.”
As an actor with autism, their sensory issues were made worse by the conditions.
“Having to wear the waterproofs underneath my costume was absolutely atrocious,” Ramsey admitted. “I’d have to make light of it on set because otherwise I was going to go insane. We’d say, ‘Oh, I’m tweaking.’”
HBO
Bella Ramsey in ‘The Last of Us’
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Despite their best efforts to “pretend that it wasn’t happening and distract myself,” there would be times they would “literally rip off my waterproofs at lunchtime.”
“Being tired for me also always amplifies my autistic traits. That was a challenge, as the months went on,” they added.
In late March, Ramsey opened up about their “neurodivergence” and revealed they had been diagnosed with autism while working on The Last of Us.
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Bella Ramsey
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Autism Speaks defines autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as “a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech and nonverbal communication.”
According to the organization, signs of autism usually present around ages 2-3. However, signs can be missed because autism is a spectrum and pediatricians may want to give a patient time to develop before making a diagnosis, per the Child Mind Institute.
“I got diagnosed with autism when I was filming season one of The Last of Us,” said Ramsey, who added that they “always wondered” if they were on the spectrum. When a crew member, who has an autistic daughter, assumed they had been diagnosed, Ramsey sought out a formal psychiatric assessment.
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“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,” they said of their “freeing” diagnosis. “The label of being autistic has been so helpful to me because that’s helped me to understand myself.”
“My experience of moving through the world is as an autistic person,” they added. “There’s no reason for people not to know.”
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New episodes of The Last of Us season 2 air Sundays at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and can be streamed on Max.
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