The Last Of Us star reveals ambitions to direct a film they have been writing since they were a teenager
BY EMILY ALICE MOSS, IMAGE BY HBO
Ever since their scene-stealing role as Lady Lyanna Mormont in HBO’s Game of Thrones, Bella Ramsey has been making quite a name for themselves in the last few years, both as an actor and as an LGBTQIA rights advocate. And now, in a recent interview with Attitude, the 20-year-old The Last Of Us star revealed that they are also setting their sights on filmmaking.
In the interview, Bella, who has just been announced as part of BAFTA’s 2023 Breakthrough UK programme, discussed a feature film screenplay that they have been writing since they were just fourteen. Of the film, Ramsey said: “[It’s] still in development and is something I want to make in a few years. When I have time!”
2023 has been a bumper year for the actor, whose star-making turn as Ellie in the HBO series The Last Of Us has bagged them a Primetime Emmy nomination. They also gave a much-lauded performance as an inmate in a women’s prison in the BBC drama, Time, and even found time to be the voice of chicken Molly in the hotly anticipated Chicken Run: Dawn Of The Nugget.
Divulging further details of their filmmaking project, the star, who came out as non-binary earlier this year, added: “It centres around mental health. But I don’t want it to be ‘this is a mental health movie’. That’s the balancing act I’m working on. It’s a bit scary. I think mental health can often be quite scary.”
The film focuses on a girl suffering from an eating disorder, which Bella described as being “done in an interesting, slightly spooky way”. Bella has previously disclosed their own personal struggles earlier in their career with the eating disorder anorexia nervosa, from which they have since thankfully recovered.
Bella added that they hope that their participation in the BAFTA Breakthrough programme will enable them to make connections who will help them to make their filmmaking ambitions a reality. “This is the thing BAFTA will be able to help with the most, and being part of this programme will support the most: those different avenues of the industry I’m interested in going down and have dipped my toe into,” they said.
The future looks bright for Bella as they look towards venturing into filmmaking, and starring in season two of The Last Of Us, where they are excited for their character’s queer romance storyline. Whether filmmaking or acting, can’t wait to see what they do next!
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