True Blood star Rutina Wesley's The Last of Us role confirmed in exclusive photo
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Since True Blood and Queen Sugar star Rutina Wesley was spotted on the Calgary set of HBO's The Last of Us, many fans of the original video games had a good idea about who the actress might be playing. In fairness, they had a really good idea. Those suspicions were right: Wesley has officially been cast in the role of Maria, which EW can exclusively confirm with a first-look photo of her in character.
Maria is a figure pulled directly from 2013's The Last of Us and 2020's The Last of Us Part II, the beloved PlayStation games that sparked this TV series adaptation. Ashley Scott voiced the role in those titles. For the purposes of the show thus far — and to avoid spoilers — the character is described as the leader of a settlement of survivors in Jackson, Wyo.
It's a role that could very easily expand should HBO decide to move ahead with The Last of Us season 2. (A renewal has not been announced.)
Liane Hentscher/HBO Rutina Wesley appears as Maria, leader of a settlement of survivors in Jackson, Wyo., in HBO's 'The Last of Us.'
Series creators Neil Druckmann (who developed the games) and Craig Mazin (HBO's Chernobyl) have said season 1 will tackle the events of the first game: 20 years after the globe's population has been ravaged by a fungal virus, Joel (Pedro Pascal), a hardened survivor living in a quarantine zone in Boston, is tasked with smuggling the mysterious young Ellie (Bella Ramsey) out of their encampment. The stakes go sky-high when it's revealed that this teen is somehow immune to the zombie-like plague and may very well be the key to finding a cure.
Season 2 could delve into material from The Last of Us Part II, and Maria has a role to play in both games. However, Druckmann and Mazin have also made clear that the show will remix the story in new and sometimes dramatic ways that will challenge gamers' expectations. So it's still to be seen what the full extent of Wesley's role will be on the show.
Wesley notably played Tara Thornton on HBO's hit vampire drama True Blood from 2008-2014. Since then, she's been primarily known for her role as Nova Bordelon on the Ava DuVernay-created Queen Sugar, though she's also had parts on Hannibal, Arrow, The Walking Dead, and another HBO venture, DMZ.
Smallz + Raskind; Naughty Dog Rutina Wesley of 'True Blood' and 'Queen Sugar' portrays 'The Last of Us' video game character Maria in the HBO series.
Wesley joins other actors who are portraying roles from The Last of Us games on the HBO adaptation. There's Gabriel Luna as Joel's brother Tommy; Merle Dandridge reprising her game role of Marlene, leader of the Fireflies rebel group in Boston; Anna Torv as Joel's ally Tess; Nico Parker as Joel's daughter Sarah; Murray Bartlett as survivor Frank; Nick Offerman as prepper Bill; Storm Reid as Ellie's friend Riley; Lamar Johnson as Henry, a man hiding from a revolutionary movement in Kansas City; and Keivonn Woodard as Henry's brother Sam.
Ashley Johnson and Troy Baker, who originated the characters of Ellie and Joel in the video games, take on parts that are newly created for the show. Johnson will play Anna, a pregnant woman, alone and on the run, who must give birth under the most terrifying of circumstances. Baker will play James, a senior member of a group of settlers who must fight to keep their community alive in the face of increasingly brutal odds.
The cast also includes Yellowjackets star Melanie Lynskey as Kathleen, the ruthless leader of that previously mentioned Kansas City revolutionary movement; Jeffrey Pierce, who voiced Tommy in the games, as Perry, a rebel in a quarantine zone; and Graham Greene and Elaine Miles as Marlon and Florence, a married couple surviving alone in the wilderness of post-apocalyptic Wyoming.
The Last of Us premieres on HBO and HBO Max this coming Sunday, Jan. 15 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.
Wesley is represented by Gersh and Anonymous Content.
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