Melanie Lynskey Just Revealed A Great "The Last Of Us" Easter Egg, And It Involves Her Husband, Jason Ritter

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There are massive spoilers ahead for The Last of Us!

If you're like me, then right about now, you're trying to figure out how exactly to move on, now that The Last of Us has wrapped Season 1. And you might be exactly like me and just want to start a rewatch ASAP.

Ellie saying "So time heals all wound, I guess," and Joel saying "I wasn't time that did it"
HBO

One of my favorite things to do while rewatching is to try to spot impressive details and/or Easter eggs that I might've missed the first time because, well, I was too wrapped up in the plot to look for them.

A close-up of a card with a green dinosaur wearing a birthday hat on a desk

On Sarah's desk in her bedroom in Episode 1, you can spot that she's making a dinosaur birthday card. This is a reference to the video game when Sarah makes the same card for Joel but forgets to give it to him.

HBO / Naughty Dog

The Last of Us is the perfect series to do this with because creators Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann, alongside the entire cast and crew, put so much thought into bringing this world to life and planting Easter eggs special to the TV adaptation, as well as callbacks to the video games.

Comparison between TV show and video game with Ellie's line "Everyone I have cared for has either died or left me"
HBO / Naughty Dog

In particular, one type of fun detail The Last of Us has utilized very well is putting actors who are important to The Last of Us family in scenes. From more obvious casting choices like Ashley Johnson, aka the original voice of Ellie in the games, as Ellie's mom, Anna...

Anna telling newborn Ellie, "You tell 'em; you fuckin' tell 'em, Ellie"
HBO

...to Laura Bailey, who voices Abby in The Last of Us: Part II, hidden in the hospital operating room scene in Episode 9, it has been so great seeing these actors pop up throughout Season 1.

But one person important to The Last of Us family was so well hidden, you definitely didn't notice him the first time you watched, and that was Melanie Lynskey's husband, and fellow actor, Jason Ritter.

Jason and Melanie on the red carpet

While appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Melanie talked about her recent work on The Last of Us and revealed that Jason was equally excited about it. So much so that he ended up being in some scenes.

Melanie and Jason on the red carpet
Frazer Harrison / Getty Images

In Episode 5, aka "Endure and Survive," when Joel (Pedro Pascal), Ellie (Bella Ramsey), Henry (Lamar Johnson), and Sam (Keivonn Montreal Woodard) are cornered by Kathleen (Lynskey) and her people, a massive horde of clickers and infected begin to swarm them. It's an intense scene that Jason was actually part of.

Joel, Ellie, Henry, and Sam crouch as they're surrounded by Kathleen and her people
HBO

That's right: Jason was one of the clickers who attack the group during the absolute chaos that is the ending of Episode 5.

Kathleen holding up a gun amid a scene of chaos and flames
HBO

"He was a stuntperson. He trained with the stuntpeople and he just did all of these amazing stunts, like, his lifelong dream," Melanie explained to Jimmy Fallon.

Melanie talking to Jimmy
Todd Owyoung / NBC via Getty Images

She continued: "He got put in the makeup and he came out of the ground and was falling all over and doing all these [stunts]. I shot him once."

Close-ups of fighting, Ellie, and Melanie with the gun
HBO

While it's hard to spot exactly which clicker is Jason in the scene, Melanie did share this adorable behind-the-scenes photo of the two of them:

Melanie shows Jimmy a photo of her being kissed by Jason in clicker makeup

And you can actually see Jason in HBO's Making of The Last of Us preparing for one of his scenes.

Arrow pointing to Jason in clicker makeup being prepared for a scene
HBO

This isn't the first time Jason has appeared in one of Melanie's projects. In 2022, he played a cop investigating Betty Gore's (Melanie) murder in Hulu's Candy.

Melanie and Jason in scenes from Candy
Hulu

And he's scheduled to appear in an episode of Yellowjackets Season 2 — after being the show's biggest cheerleader and champion in Season 1, let's be honest.

When I say Melanie and Jason are one of my favorite couples in Hollywood, I mean it, and I love that Jason got to have this little The Last of Us cameo.

Smiling Jason in a bow tie and smiling Melanie in a long-sleeved dress
Frazer Harrison / Getty Images

You can watch Melanie's full interview on The Tonight Show below: