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The world has changed a lot since The Last of Us introduced viewers to a post-apocalyptic world full of mushroom monsters and grizzled survivors. What hasn't changed? Anticipation for the return of our favorite pseudo-father-daughter duo: Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey. Luckily, the pair is ready to crawl back into the cold, moldy embrace of the HBO thriller for the season 2 premiere.
"I didn't realize how much I missed you until we were back doing a scene together," Ramsey told Pascal during our Zoom call earlier this month. "And then I never wanted it to stop." Contrary to Pascal and Ramsey's bubbly, real-life energy, their on-screen characters suffered a massive blow to their relationship at the end of the first season.
In The Last of Us, Joel (Pascal) is hired to smuggle Ellie (Ramsey) out of a quarantine zone, following a fungal infection that mutates most of humanity into carnivorous killing machines. Though the pair leans on each other for survival, Joel is faced with an impossible choice in the finale that creates a massive rift between the two when season 2 returns. Behind the scenes, the actors couldn't have a stronger friendship.
Their interactions over the years have launched a thousand sweet TikTok tributes, one particularly viral Esquire cover story, and the show's successful renewal for a third season. Before season 2 kicked off this Sunday night, Pascal and Ramsey spoke to Esquire about how it felt to come back on set, how the pair solved their "giggle problem" between takes, and whose fault it really was when Pascal broke character on Saturday Night Live. This interview is condensed and edited for clarity.
Jeff Kravitz // Getty Images "There was sort of a fresh energy and excitement around it," Ramsey says of returning for season 2. "It was hard, hard work, as it always is, but the connections that you make with people on set just get you through." ESQUIRE: What was the energy like when you arrived on set for season 2? RAMSEY: There was sort.
.. Sirena He.
