HBO’s The Last of Us has been one of the most hotly debated shows in recent memory. After a highly successful first season, the second season arrived with far more mixed reception—viewership drop-offs, fan backlash, and heated conversations about the show’s direction. Now, Bella Ramsey, who plays Ellie, has decided to fire back at critics in a way that’s raising eyebrows: telling frustrated viewers and The Last of Us fans that they simply don’t have to watch anymore.
On the Awardist podcast, Ramsey addressed the growing criticism over Season 2. Rather than seeking to win back the disillusioned audience, she doubled down with a blunt response to The Last of Us fans who are complaining:
“You don’t have to watch it,” she said. “If you hate it that much, the game exists. You can just play the game again. You don’t have to watch Season 3. If you do want to watch it, I hope you enjoy it.”
Bella Ramsey as Ellie Williams in The Last of Us (2023), HBO
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It’s the kind of comment that might feel good in the moment but rarely plays well with fans. In fact, history has shown that one of the fastest ways to alienate your audience is to tell them to walk away. More often than not, they listen.
A Pattern of Fan Dismissal
Ramsey also admitted she’s avoided much of the online chatter about the show, saying she knew nothing could be changed about Season 2 after it aired. That’s a fair point—but it also echoes a broader sentiment we’ve seen from showrunners and actors in recent years: a tendency to dismiss criticism outright rather than engage with what fans are actually saying.
Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsay doing press for The Last of Us – X, @painfulships
Showrunner Craig Mazin has expressed a similar attitude, noting he expected “furor” over Season 2’s deviations from the game and that pleasing social media was never part of the plan.
While there’s truth in the idea that art can’t be built by committee, there’s also a reality: franchises live or die by whether audiences want to keep showing up.
The Danger of “Don’t Watch”
Hollywood history is littered with examples of creatives telling fans not to watch if they don’t like the product. Rarely does it end well. Brie Larson’s Captain Marvel press tour, Rian Johnson’s The Last Jedi commentary, and even more recent Marvel and Disney projects have suffered long-term reputational damage when cast or creators chose confrontation over bridge-building.
Pedro Pascal hugging co-star Bella Ramsay – X, @painfulships
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When you tell customers not to watch, they often take you at your word. In a streaming era where attention is scarce and competition is fierce, suggesting fans walk away is the opposite of what a struggling franchise needs.
What This Means for The Last of Us
Ramsey’s comment comes as The Last of Us Season 3 looms, with HBO still positioning the series as a prestige drama. Yet, as many outlets have pointed out, Season 2 was already divisive. Declining viewership numbers and controversy over story choices have left the fanbase fractured.
Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey as Ellie in The Last of Us (2023), HBO
The real question is this: will telling people to “just play the game” convince anyone to come back for another season? Or does it confirm suspicions that the creative team isn’t interested in what viewers have to say?
If HBO hopes to keep The Last of Us in the cultural spotlight, it may want to think carefully about the optics of its stars dismissing critics. Because once fans stop watching, they don’t always return—and no amount of prestige branding can fix that.
Final Thought
Bella Ramsey may have meant her message to the Last of Us fans as some kind of tough love, but in the court of public opinion, they risk sounding like an open door for fans to exit.
Pedro Pascal as Joel and Bella Ramsey as Ellie in The Last of Us (2023), HBO
Telling people not to watch is one of the riskiest moves in entertainment—and for a franchise already facing growing skepticism, it could be the very last thing HBO needed.
Are you surprised that Bella Ramsay lashed out at the Last of Us fans? Sound off in the comments and let us know!
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I can assure her, they won’t.
Isn’t it interesting that cast members tell people not to watch, when serious fans have already bailed on their garbage TV shows?
I wish I’d never seen her mug in the first place.
Watch her get mad when people don’t watch.
If the show was fun, macho, had beautiful stars, and was kick-ass then I’d watch it, regardless of what any actress whines about. But, it’s gay and lame, and has potato faced carpet-licking woke actresses.
They really screwed up themselves with casting this actress. Her face is so…unique, that you would have to love the show to like her as well. In addition, the second season and Bella+Isabella scenes were so boring that even the hardest fans began to leave. It was literally a lesbian drama which for some reason was set in post zombie apocalypse.
It made series of very expensive mistakes. But those of us who get their signals early on, were alerted when these parasitic soabs replaced every white character with a better, diverse face except for potato face.
Everything about show is horrible. Tlou2 which had a lot of issues at least had graphics, beautiful faces and gameplay. In light of that, it is easy to see how second season failed so badly. It had no support, only Bella and horrible writing.
She’s wrong. You SHOULDN’T watch that garbage.
Deal