GLAAD: The Last of Us’ Ellie “Primed to Become the Most Famous LGBT Character in Gaming”

Recently, the LGBT-friendly media monitoring organization GLAAD named The Last of Us‘ Ellie as one of the “Most intriguing” LGBT characters of 2014, predicting that she might become the most famous LGBT character in gaming.

[Drithe]

Definitely will NOT be playing a new TLOU now.

[Snookies12]

There was no real indication she was gay(lesbian). A LOT of straight people experimented when they were younger. Doesn't mean they're gay because they tried kissing the same sex in the past. Besides, Ellie was young, in a world like that... I'm sure it wouldn't be easy to find a soul mate in that kind of world, much less one of a preferred sex.

[itBourne]

Completely agree, and this is why I do not want a Last of Us 2. This is just one of the examples. Things were made to be open to interpretation. Even when Niel or Bruce give their opinion, on the ending for instance, they say it is how I look at it. If a new game is made, all those peoples thoughts go out the window. The ending of the Last of Us doesnt matter... Leave it open to peoples interpretation, and let people look at things how they want, in this regard and the ending.

[medman]

@itBourne
Nobody says TLOU 2, if made, has to continue with Ellie or Joel. It could be a whole new set of characters in the same world. Having said that, I would love to see TLOU 2 be the story of a now 20 something Ellie, with Joel no longer alive.

[TheTwelve]

Except...Naughty Dog tweeted last night that they are happy to see their character Ellie viewed by GLAAD in such a way. Pretty sure the writers intend for her to be lesbian.

[TricksterArrow]

You make valid points, still, if it were two boys kissing, I don't think people would dismiss it as "experimenting" or "a soul mate amid adversity". Do people claim that Bill was only experimenting or settled with whoever was by his side?

People are biased.

[falloutx]

No the writers told the voice actors to read the script as if they were in love. look it up.

[rainslacker]

In the first game I never saw anything that made me wonder. I actually missed the Bill being gay thing despite plenty of suggestive evidence. The DLC was a bit more clear, but a kiss between friends doesn't really indicate sexual preference, particularly at that age, and particularly for women.

ND has come out and made it less ambiguous, which I think was a mistake, because I like that people were actually analyzing the story based on their own perceptions, but I digress.

In neither the main game or the DLC did her sexual preference really have much to do with her character. I felt in the DLC, it was more about intimacy than sexuality. It was a deep connection, and as with most things, people have different types of connections with different kinds of people, and those connections do not always define them.

[Hiro193]

Ok? Don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Or do.

I don't care.

[BC_Master_Haze]

Don't let the trolls get to you man, he's just in it to get that rise out of you :) thanks Drithe, for being the vocal homophobic minority Which the media views us as, you're really helping your hobby /s

[pasta_spice]

If you're going to skip one of the best games of the past few years because it has a short barely-a-second-long kiss in it, then that says more about your immaturity than the quality of the game itself. Don't worry, playing a game with a gay character in it won't suddenly turn you gay. Gay men won't suddenly burst into your room and throw a rave party. The police won't arrest you and force you to watch 24 hours of gay porn as punishment.

You could always just play the game and...gasp...enjoy the amazingly written story, great gameplay, and well rounded characters.

[Darkwatchman]

You realize naughty dog has said time and time again that a theoretical sequel would involve an entirely new set of characters, right?

[Martinozmania]

@Drithe Definitely don't care about such an ignorant opinion.

[Jonny5isalive]

joel and her will have a baby that is immune to the spores and it will have their killing skills.

[arbitor365]

way to be a part of the 21st century, dude

[ltachiUchiha]

Never played a game that made me love Ellie & Joel so much. Im glad millions of ppl feel the same way. TLOU was an amazing game.

[Eonjay]

Totally deserved, but even if she wasn't gay, she is still one of the most intriguing characters period.

[NovusTerminus]

And it had nothing to do with her sexuality. Just her character...

[Visualift]

Who cares.

[ameliabaz]

I don't, but if there are gay kids out there who are feeling alone or suicidal, and a game can help them feel less alone, then I think that is a good thing. Ellie's voice actress has said that she was emotional when she discovered a lesbian fan started crying at the kiss scene because her own teen years were so hard: http://anglknives.tumblr.co...

(Forgive me for linking to tumblr)

[Visualift]

Sure, there are also straight kids out there who are feeling alone or suicidal as well. Everyone experiences relational, sexual, etc. stress.

[mgszelda1]

I'm so tired of these stupid articles about ellie being a lesbian. It's like nowadays if your a lesbian u should be proud and flaunt it. I don't shove my heterosexuality in ppls faces. Shut up and get over yourselves. Ps I have nothing against gauss or lesbians, just tired of them being treated like they are "special"

[pasta_spice]

How is Ellie "shoving her sexuality in people's faces"? She kissed a girl for like 0.3 seconds. She didn't stick her tongue down Riley's throat and cry "LESBIANS FOR LIFE!!!! STRAIGHT PEOPLE SUCK!!"

If she kissed a guy, would you be saying she's "flaunting" her sexuality? What about all the straight kiss/sex scenes in games like God of War and The Witcher? Is that "shoving heterosexuality in your face"? Or does it only apply to gay characters?

[GribbleGrunger]

Well said. Bubble.

[bloodybutcher]

I think mgszelda meant articles such as this and gay community overall, not Ellie. I understand that, being gay is finally considered normal in western civilization (excluding some individuals, of course), yet sometimes homosexuals try to behave like it's something special. Of course it's a big generalization, of which (not only on this subject) i usually try to refrain from.

[mgszelda1]

Not ellie. Ppl in society. It's like you get a badge of honor for coming out. You are not more special than a straight person. Your just a person like them. I could care less if Ellie was a full blown lesbian. The character is awesome gay or straight

[mixelon]

Thanks. That needed to be said.

[xabmol]

@pasta

Learn to read. He was clearly talking about the article, not the character. It is stated CLEARLY in the first sentence.

@grible

Don't support stupidity. There is enough of it on this site already.

[TheTwelve]

You're talking like Ellie is a real person and not a creation out of the minds of adults with a point to make.

[Big_Game_Hunters]

Ellie isn't, the lgbt community is. That is my problem with all of this. i thought the whole idea was to teach people that being gay was no big deal yet ellie kisses a girl one time and they jump at the chance to make a huge deal out of it... understand why some people get annoyed yet?

like you said yourself the kiss was no big deal, so its time for both sides to stop treating it like on. Just like being straight, being gay is nothing to be proud of nor ashamed of. Its simply what you are and thats all there is to it.

@xabmol
thank you bubble+

[ameliabaz]

Considering gay people still can't get married, youth suicide is most common in gays, and anti-gay bashings are still fairly common in some parts of America, I wouldn't say homosexuals are being treated like they are special at all. One gay group praising a game character (who might not even be 100% gay because it's left ambiguous) for existing is hardly special treatment.

[mgszelda1]

I've seen more articles about Ellie being a lesbian or possibly being a lesbian. So much so it feels like these ppl care more about ellie sexual preference than the relationship between joel and ellie, which is way better to talk about. It's like talking about star wars and telling me jar jar was gay. I do not care, it's background noise

[Captain_Wormy]

The amount of homophobes in this article is too damn high!

[fluxmulder]

Such a forced character.

[YamiMarik]

Judging from the attitude of some pro-gay people, you're not allowed to be in the 'Don't give a crap' crowd. You are either someone who goes to LGBT marches wearing rainbow colored clothes and who goes around chanting "LGBT FTW", or you're a bloodthirsty bigot who is full of hatred.

[mgszelda1]

Only on the Internet man. I get along with gays and lesbians in RL. Would I go to a rally for "their cause"... no. Why? Cuz I'm just not that into it. Don't lecture me on "causes". I know about worse things than not being able to get married. Besides most ppl treat marriage like the piece of paper the certificate it was written on, paper to be thrown away

[Klonoa-dreamtraveler]

cant wait for the next TLOU.

[Nemesis4567]

So because Ellie kissed Riley, she's a full on lesbian. In that world, Riley was her only friend. The only person she could trust at that point. Riley made that hellhole of a world enjoyable. So she gave her a kiss, as she didn't want to lose her, get over it. I don't think that kiss made Ellie a lesbian, I think that kiss made Ellie Human.

[mixelon]

Theyre said LGBT character - nobody is claiming she's 100% lifelong über lesbian, she could be bi, gay, etc.

It was a romantic kiss though, the creators have stated as much.

[rainslacker]

I always preferred looking at the subject as if the devs never clarified. I like the discussions that were had before they did. I think this is because they did the characters so well that the ambiguity left the story interesting, and left more to talk about.

Otherwise, if you think about it like that, I can name several women on my face book list who have friends with pics of them kissing their other female friends. I know some of them, and they aren't lesbians or bi, just having fun for pictures.

The kiss in LB was a bit different, but I found it intimate, not sexual, and intimacy can be between any gender. Being close to someone, and how one expresses that closeness does not always define their sexuality.

See how much more interesting that is than, "The devs said she had a romantic kiss", to imply that she's into women.

Otherwise, no matter what sexual preference Ellie has, it never really defined her character in any way, much like how they handled Bill, who if you didn't pay attention you would think was straight as a pencil.

[mixelon]

In a sense im glad they clarified it as a lot of people clearly have issue with the idea that she could be even remotely a lesbian, and it might just make them think for a second that maybe one's orientation isn't a big deal, and doesn't lessen them as a person.

Ambiguity allows a lot of people to hand wave it away. Otherwise I'm all for ambiguity too, but it's framed like young love, the writing and performances imply as such, and the devs and actors have said so.. Sex doesn't have to come into it at all, they can be asexual and still love each other. :)

[rainslacker]

That's actually a pretty valid point. I guess when I talked about the good discussion from it, I was talking more along the lines of mature people who can discuss it without it being taboo.

I really don't feel her sexual preference defines her character in any way. It might of course, but not for the story presented so far.

Anyhow, I feel the fact that people didn't realize it in the first game is just a testament to how much one's sexual orientation does not necessarily define them. That people of different sexual orientations are still human, and there are more important things to look at when deciding how you should feel about a person.

[Adrian_v01]

Girls are not made lesbians...

[UnholyWolfbane]

She kissed someone. Why the hell do people think she is a full on lesbian from a kiss? It's just a damn kiss.

[TricksterArrow]

That's why you kiss any of your friends of the same gender on the mouth... Oh, wait you don't. She had romantic feelings for another girl, which classifies her as a LGBT character.

[bloodybutcher]

I guess you went to all-male school, eh? Teenage girls kiss when they are friends.

[TricksterArrow]

Not on my school, they didn't. Well, there were a few... They are LGBT now.

[Mike_D82]

How gay is GLAAD? Super gay.

[qwerty676]

lol wtf? what a dumb article

[telekineticmantis]

more homosexual propaganda, and of course they use a Black character to promote it even more in the Black community, very few Blacks can get decent roles, and when they do, seems they have to be gay, TrueBlood, Orange is the new Black, Brooklyn 99, sirens etc etc. genius move.

[WeAreLegion]

But only the captain is gay in Brooklyn 99. Terry is straight. And probably the best character.

[Antifan]

Ellie isn't gay. Kids that grew up in that time did not learn what sort of actions that classified as "gay". She was just showing her friend how much she cared for her, nothing else.

[lonelyplayer]

Ellie is one of the more likable characters in gaming history.

With respect to the lesbian thing, I'd say many (or most?) girls have lesbian experiences in college.

[arbitor365]

I don't know why anyone would have a problem with left behind. Naughty dog didnt beat anyone over the head with some hamfisted political message about LGBT rights. They just had two characters with a unique relationship.

The interactions between the two were totally realistic and believable and it had the sort of subtlety and ambiguity that would come from a real relationship like that. Sexuality can be a grey area. People arent always 100% gay or 100% straight. And its not always purely sex driven. Like always, naughty dog nailed this one.

[arbitor365]

I dont think it should be hoisted as some political achievement, but I definitely detest the people who are like

"your pushing the f@g agenda on our kids! this is against jesus"

and all that nonsense. I have zero respect for people that ignorant and bigoted.