Bella Ramsey has shared that they were diagnosed with autism while filming the first season of The Last of Us — a revelation that’s been both “freeing” and transformative for the Emmy-nominated star.
Ramsey, 21, opened up to British Vogue about the moment a crew member noticed certain behaviours on set that mirrored their neurodivergent child, prompting Ramsey to seek a formal assessment.
“I’ve spoken a bit about neurodivergence before, but I always for some reason didn’t want to… I felt like I didn’t want to say what it was… Shoot,” they said. “I got diagnosed with autism when I was filming Season 1 of The Last of Us.”
The diagnosis, they explained, helped clarify a number of things they had “always wondered” about — like sensory issues and the long-standing feeling of not quite fitting in.
“Too much stuff on my body,” Ramsey said of the thermals and waterproofs they had to wear while filming in the cold. Those discomforts, they later learned, are common for people on the autism spectrum.
“The label of being autistic has been so helpful to me because that’s helped me to understand myself,” they said. “But gender and sexuality-wise, labels do not feel comfy for me in any capacity, because I feel like I’m putting myself into a box. I feel trapped.”
Ramsey - who rose to fame playing Lyanna Mormont in Game of Thrones and currently stars as Ellie opposite Pedro Pascal’s Joel - said their autism has been instrumental in shaping their acting craft.
“I’ve always been watching and learning from people. Having to learn more manually how to socialise and interact with the people around me has helped me with acting," they revealed.
The structured environment on set also proved beneficial.
“I have a call time, and I’m told what to wear, how to stand, where to stand and what to eat,” Ramsey said. “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.”
Since speaking publicly about their diagnosis, Ramsey said they’ve been able to “unmask immediately” and move through life more authentically. “My experience of moving through the world is as an autistic person. There’s no reason for people not to know,” they added.
Ramsey has touched on neurodivergence before, telling The Independent in 2023: “I wouldn’t be an actor if it wasn’t for my neurodivergence. It’s just a part of me and it’s incredibly helpful in terms of acting.
"One of my things is that I have insane levels of visual perception compared to all the other things. I’ve been watching people and absorbing everything since I was really young… all these characters that I play, there’s an element of them that’s already inside me because I’ve seen someone be that before.”
Speaking with the BBC, they emphasized the importance of breaking stigma: “You can be in industries like this and openly say that you're autistic, why there shouldn't be sort of such a stigma around that and such a fear around that.”
“So I'm very proud to be able to say it out loud and also just to bring more awareness. Autism comes in all different shapes and sizes, and and I'm not someone that people would maybe typically see and go like 'oh, you're autistic'.”
Season one of The Last of Us was a critical and cultural juggernaut, premiering in January 2023 and racking up 24 Emmy nominations. Its second season launched April 13, following the storyline of The Last of Us Part II — a continuation set five years after the original.
In the world of the show, Ramsey plays humanity’s best hope against a deadly fungal plague. But off-screen, their honesty is helping others understand the spectrum of neurodiversity a little more clearly.
What's more, Ramsey's success is a huge personal victory, after she revealed that she was once told her looks weren't right and got passed on for jobs because of it.
Speaking to GQ, in a clip that was widely shared on X, Ramsey heartbreakingly admitted that there were other roles they lost out on because they didn't fit Hollywood's beauty ideal.
Ramsey explained: "I was told [in] one of my first auditions ever... The director really liked me but I didn't get the part because I didn't have the 'Hollywood look'. That's something that I've always found very interesting."
Ramsey had also revealed to the publication that even getting the role in The Last of Us came with criticism from fans over her "square head" and not looking like their imagining of the character. They added: "You're looking for a comment that's more painful than the last one. I'd kid myself that I was doing it in jest."
Despite the battle to get into the industry, Ramsey's talent ultimately won in the end.