The Last of Us is about so much more than just the Cordyceps outbreak and zombies, as it spends a lot of time discussing how humanity has adapted to this grim reality. This is true of both the original games and the phenomenal HBO series adaptation. In a world where humanity's struggles are at the forefront, there are naturally many thought-provoking quotes that stick in fans' minds.
The best quotes to come out of The Last of Us either have a wider meaning that sums up certain aspects of the show or mark a memorable moment. Joel and Ellie are the main characters of The Last of Us, and while they both offer so many memorable words, plenty of other characters deliver unforgettable lines that still linger with fans.
Updated on September 8, 2024, by Michael Colwander: HBO's The Last of Us is gearing toward its second season. With just one, brief, teaser, fan excitement is swelling for the upcoming Season 2, which will be based on The Last of Us: Part II. It's worth going back to the first season of The Last of Us and reliving its most impactful quotes. More The Last of Us quotes have been added.
25 "It's the Normal People That Scare Me."
Bill (Season 1, Episode 3, "Long, Long Time")
The infected are bad, but at least they're predictable. It's the normal people that scare me.
One of the most important themes in The Last of Us is the cruelty of people. Yes, the Infected are horrifying, but people have the intelligence, resources, and greed to become a way more dangerous threat. In a post-apocalyptic world, surprisingly, most humans are protecting themselves mostly from other humans, and not from the Infected.
From the very beginning, Bill was suspicious of people, and for good reason. Trusting Frank brought him the love of his life, but he wasn't naive enough to invite other people to his safe space. He understood that the biggest danger of all was people willing to hurt others for their own gain. So one of Bill and Frank's biggest arguments came when Bill learned Frank was communicating with Tess and wanted to invite her and Joel. This quote is one of the most relevant ones in The Last of Us because, even though there are no Infected in real life, there are plenty of normal people, which is terrifying.
24 "The Only People Who Can Betray Us Are The Ones We Trust."
Maria (Season 1, Episode 6, "Kin")
There's a whole lot you're not telling me. Good. Therein lies the point. Be careful who you put your faith in. The only people who can betray us are the ones we trust.
Maria Miller is one of the leaders of a safe community in Jackson, Wyoming, and she's married to Joel's little brother, Tommy. To make sure her people are safe from not only the Infected but from cruel people beyond their walls, Maria has to be intelligent, tough, and stern.
Maria takes a liking to Ellie, and she gives her this advice. It might seem a bit cynical, but Maria is right. The Last of Us portrays a world where most people would kill others to save themselves. Even though Joel was eventually worthy of Ellie's trust, Ellie shouldn't have trusted him so easily initially. It's a lesson that Ellie, Joel, and anyone else in The Last of Us universe should take to heart entering Season 2.
23 "It Was Either Him Or Me."
Joel (Season 1, Episode 4, "Please Hold to My Hand")
This is one of the emotional scenes in The Last of Us. Ellie likes to pretend she's tough, but she's just a kid in the end. After she shoots a man to save Joel's life, she has to listen to him begging for his life as Joel finishes him with a knife. Killing Infected is one thing; killing people alive who are scared is a whole other one. Killing the living sticks in the minds of every character, Joel included.
The problem with this scene is that it causes a moral dilemma. Joel tries to justify his actions by stating that it was either the other man or himself. However, Joel kills the other man when he's already hurt and unarmed. Ultimately, there's probably not a right choice in a world led by survival of the fittest. However, The Last of Us gives the audience these kinds of moments for them to reflect on what's truly fair and what isn't.
22 "You Mattered To Me First."
Ellie (Season 1, Episode 7, "Left Behind")
Episode 7 of The Last of Us tells the story of Ellie and Riley, one of the most heartbreaking arcs of the series. Ellie and Riley were both students at a FEDRA (Federal Disaster Response Agency) military facility. However, Riley leaves to become part of the Fireflies' rebellion. This leaves Ellie and Riley in completely opposite groups. As a goodbye, Riley plans a night out in an abandoned mall with Ellie, full of surprising and magical moments.
Ellie is clearly smitten with Riley and when the latter tells her she feels she matters to the Fireflies, Ellie replies with this harrowing quote. The love between these two teenagers in such a horrible time completely moved the audience. This quote shows Ellie's unwavering love and loyalty, even when the world is crumbling around her. Despite being the seventh episode, "Left Behind" is the catalyst that sees the events of the show in motion. It's also one of the moments and episodes that consolidates Bella Ramsey's outstanding acting skills.
21 "There's Always Been Something Bad Out There."
Joel (Season 1, Episode 9, "Look for the Light")
Maybe there's nothing bad out there, but so far there's always been something bad out there. We don’t have to do this. I want you to know that.
The last episode of the first season of The Last of Us sees a radical change in the personalities of the two main characters — and it makes sense, since both of them have gone through hell and back. However, they finally reach the hospital, which was always their main objective: getting Ellie to the hospital to get the vaccine out of her. Still, Joel is distrustful as always, and he is not optimistic about the hospital's intentions. In fact, given the track record, he's pretty pessimistic about it.
This quote is bittersweet. Pedro Pascal delivers it in a funny tone, but at the same time, it's true. They haven't had the best luck during their journey. What's worse, Joel ends up being right. The hospital planned to kill Ellie to get the vaccine, so as always, there was indeed something bad out there.
20 "Did You Know Diarrhea Is Hereditary?"
Ellie (Season 1, Episode 4, "Please Hold to My Hand")
Did you know diarrhea is hereditary? It runs in your jeans.
Joel and Ellie didn't exactly hit it off in their first introduction. For three episodes, the two bickered and picked on one another. Ellie found joy in seeing Joel squirm, ticked off, while Joel couldn't wait to pass Ellie off to someone else. It's not until the end of Season 1, Episode 4, "Please Hold to My Hand," that Joel starts to warm up to Ellie.
Having found a pun book at an abandoned gas station, Ellie sees an awkward silence between the pair as an opportunity to show off her comedian skills. Joel and Ellie had just stepped into the QZ war and needed to lighten the mood. The full diarrhea joke makes Joel crack a smile for the first time since meeting Ellie, reminding him of his daughter Sarah. It isn't long before even Joel cracks a joke, solidifying their bond.
19 "Everybody I Have Ever Cared For Has Either Died Or Left Me."
Ellie (Season 1, Episode 6, "Kin")
Everybody I have cared for has either died or left me. Everybody f*cking except for you.
In "Kin," Joel asks Tommy to relieve him of his duty to deliver Ellie to the Fireflies. Ellie believes it's because Joel doesn't want anything to do with her, but in reality, Joel is worried that he's going to fail Ellie. The two get into a heated argument, leading to an exchange of harsh words.
Ellie finally breaks through her shell by revealing how she truly feels about Joel. She doesn't explicitly tell him she cares for him, but she recognizes him as the only person she has left in her life who hasn't died or abandoned her. Ellie, at this point, knows about Joel's daughter Sarah. She tries to reassure him that she isn't Sarah and that she won't suffer the same fate. Joel rejects Ellie by saying that, no, she isn't Sarah.
18 "I Swear."
Joel (Season 1, Episode 9, "Look for the Light")
The ending of the first game is verbatim to the The Last of Us Season 1 finale. Joel ambushes the Fireflies' attempt to kill Ellie for a cure and lies to Ellie about what happened at the hospital. Ellie questions Joel, giving him one more chance to be honest with her, but he swears he is.
The relationship between Joel and Ellie built up to this moment where it would all fall apart. Joel finally replaced the hole Sarah left in his heart but destroyed everything the moment he lied to Ellie. Earlier in that episode, she had expressed that she wanted to go through with meeting the Fireflies because their journey couldn't have been for nothing. Upon hearing that the Fireflies have given up, she knows Joel chose his own desires over what she and humanity need. It's a moment that will serve as one of the core pillars of the second season, with many TV-only fans wondering if the two will ever fully reconcile.
17 "...Okay."
Ellie (Season 1, Episode 9, "Look for the Light")
No matter how much weight Joel puts behind his "I swear," it doesn't compare to how heavy Ellie's response is. From the moment Ellie woke from her anesthesia, she was immediately suspicious of Joel and his explanation. As she returns to Tommy with Joel in Wyoming, Ellie's been preparing for an emotional speech about how much reaching the Fireflies has meant to her. How much purpose it gave her.
Ellie gives Joel a chance to be honest with her. Even though Ellie accepts Joel's swear, deep down, she knows there's way more to this story. Ellie's "Okay," the final line of the first season, is full of heartbreak and Bella Ramsey sells the line just as well as Ashley Johnson, the voice of Ellie in the game. It caps off what is arguably one of the best endings in all of video games, and it translates perfectly to the show.
16 "Bomb This City And Everyone In It."
Dr. Ratna (Season 1, Episode 2, "Infected")
Bomb. Bomb this city and everyone in it.
In the second flashback of the series, viewers come to learn about the origins of the virus in Indonesia. Dr. Ratna Pertiwi is asked to consult about the virus that has spread in a flour factory. When asked what the solution is, she simply responds, "Bomb the city and everyone in it."
Dr. Ratna Pertiwi's response instills the terrifying fear that the virus cannot be stopped. For an expert like herself to suggest that the only solution is to murder millions of people to prevent the spread only means that the Cordyceps virus could cause humanity's extinction. For the most part, it succeeded. This scene was never in the game, but it adds significant backstory and context, making it a valuable addition to the franchise.
15 "Endure And Survive."
Ellie and Sam (Season 1, Episode 5, "Endure and Survive")
To the edge of the universe and back, endure and survive.
"Endure and survive" spawned a thousand tattoos in The Last of Us fan community. The quote, taken from the fictional comic Savage Starlight, originates in the first video game as the motto Ellie reminds herself to keep going. The quote became so iconic that the fifth episode of the first season was named after it.
In the fifth episode, Ellie and Sam find comics in an abandoned underground community. It's the first moment Ellie acts like a kid as she gets excited over finding the comics. For Sam, it was finally an opportunity to hang out with someone around his age, which was a relief to his brother, Henry. Sam even teaches Ellie how to sign the catchphrase, forming a close bond between the two kids.
14 "Save Who You Can Save."
Tess (Season 1, Episode 2, "Infected")
Joel, save who you can save.
Those who weren't familiar with The Last of Us game may not have seen Tess' death coming in Episode 2, but it ultimately drove Ellie and Joel forward. Joel was only tempted to deliver Ellie to the Fireflies because of the promised rewards, but Tess tried to sway his mind.
When Tess was bitten, she made Joel swear to her that he would see this through and escort Ellie to safety. "Save who you can save" was such a powerful final sentence that Joel sprung into action and dragged Ellie out of the room to safety. Without this line from Tess, all the events henceforth would not have occurred. Joel may have taken Ellie back to Boston and maybe Ellie ends up traveling with someone else.
13 "We Lose."
Dr. Neuman (Season 1, Episode 1, "When You're Lost in the Darkness")
HBO's The Last of Us has proven to be a faithful adaptation for the most part, and any deviations from the source material have served a purpose. The cold open of Episode 1 included a flashback before Joel and Sarah's story. The flashback showed a talk show in 1968 where John Hannah's Doctor Neuman laid out the facts about how a Cordyceps mutation would work if it somehow made its way to humans.
The presenter and audience initially laughed off Neuman's ominous warnings, but they eventually fell silent as they listened to his compelling theories and predictions. Neuman set the stage for the 2003 outbreak while briefly explaining what the Cordyceps is all about for the audience both in-universe and those watching The Last of Us, ending it on the horrifying note of, "We lose."
12 "I Was Never Afraid Before You Showed Up."
Bill (Season 1, Episode 3, "Long, Long Time)
While HBO's adaptation of The Last of Us has remained extremely faithful to the game, some episodes have branched out and explored certain areas in greater detail. "Long, Long Time" is one such example, as it dedicates a whole episode to Bill and Frank's life together.
"Long, Long Time" explores how the pair met and fell in love, with numerous witty, romantic, and tragic quotes throughout. However, "I was never afraid before you showed up" was a rare burst of emotion from Bill, who had survived alone for many years before he met Frank. He was even alone beforehand, with his only real ties to the outside world being conspiracy theories. This quote perfectly sums up his love for Frank. Bill now has a reason to live and someone he never wants to lose.
11 "It Wasn't Time That Did It."
Joel (Season 1, Episode 9, "Look for the Light")
Episode 9 of The Last of Us wrapped up Joel and Ellie's journey across America to a Firefly facility in dramatic fashion, but not before having some truly heartfelt moments between the pair. Previously, Joel explained his scar and lack of hearing to Ellie as "someone who had shot and missed." In Episode 9, Joel revealed he was the one who shot and missed.
In a heartbreaking moment, Joel explained how he couldn't handle Sarah's death, but he flinched when he tried to take his own life. Ellie understood this as "time heals old wounds," but Joel responded with, "It wasn't time that did it." It was a beautiful moment that showed them both being vulnerable, cementing their close bond.
10 "Everything Happens For A Reason."
David (Season 1, Episode 8, "When We Are in Need")
There's no such thing as luck. No, I believe everything happens for a reason.
Despite his pleasant demeanor around Ellie upon their initial meeting, David was a monster camouflaged as a preacher. The latter stages of "When We Are in Need" showed his true colors, but his earlier conversation with Ellie was especially interesting.
David insisted that "everything happens for a reason" before explaining that Joel and Ellie killed one of his crew. It was a thought-provoking revelation that had viewers considering the difference between luck and fate. In the lead-up to this quote, tension slowly builds, especially for viewers who are suspicious of David. When David says this line, that tension boils over as Ellie and viewers finally see their anxieties justified. David's line sticks with Ellie as she even retorts it herself when trying to convince David that she had infected him later on.
9 ”Tell Them That Ellie Is The Little Girl Who Broke Your F*cking Finger!”
Ellie (Season 1, Episode 8, "When We Are in Need")
Tell them that Ellie is the little girl who broke your f*cking finger!
"When We Are in Need" sees Ellie fending for herself. While she handles herself well, she is eventually captured by David and his people, which is where Ellie learns of their dark secret. While David wanted revenge, he understood Ellie was a child. In his mind, she was just another one of Joel's victims.
David initially hoped to groom Ellie into both a valuable member of their community and creepily as a potential mate. Ellie, who at this point hasn't even shared her name with David, lures him in. After David puts his fingers into the cage holding Ellie, Ellie takes the opportunity to break one of David's fingers. As David is about to storm out in anger, Ellie says her name. When David asks what she means by "Ellie," Ellie responds with this badass line pulled straight from the game.
8 ”Yeah, You Tell Them.”
Anna (Season 1, Episode 9, "Look for the Light")
Yeah, you tell them. You f*cking tell them, Ellie.
HBO's The Last of Us features numerous flashback scenes unique to the show. Arguably the most notable comes in the final episode depicting Ellie's birth. Ellie's mother, Anna, is played by Ashley Johnson who voices Ellie in the games. Of course, there was no better person to play Ellie's mother in the show.
Anna, who was bitten by an Infected while pregnant, flees the Fireflies and attempts to find shelter in an abandoned cabin. After giving birth to Ellie, Ellie is naturally crying. Anna doesn't tell the newborn Ellie to be quiet or anything like that. She reassures Ellie to keep going. Don't shield her emotions. Talk back. It's an emotional scene because Anna is on the verge of dying. She wants to make every moment count. Even though Ellie never truly met her mother, it's clear she takes after her mother. It's also clear that no one would be more proud of who Ellie grows up to be than Anna.
7 "A Bad Reputation Doesn't Mean You're Bad."
Tommy (Season 1, Episode 6, "Kin")
One of Tommy's first sentences after being reunited with his brother Joel in Episode 6 was defending his group's forceful actions when they detained Joel and Ellie. "A bad reputation doesn't mean you're bad" is rather underappreciated, as it can be applied as a point of contention for The Last of Us' first season.
While Tommy was using the line to defend his own group's actions, Maria immediately twisted it into a dig at Joel and his bad reputation being accurate and justified. The themes of Joel's violent actions and their consequences were present throughout the entire season, but in Episode 9, Joel killed all the Fireflies, which then raised questions about whether Joel could justify his actions. This quote from Tommy will continue to be prevalent entering the second season.
6 "I Can't F*ckin' Do This Without You."
Ellie (Season 1, Episode 6, "Kin")
Joel, open your eyes. Open your eyes. Joel, you gotta get up... I can't f*ckin' do this without you. I don't know where the f*ck I'm going, what the f*ck I'm gonna do. Joel... Please. Joel, please.
Ellie depends on Joel. For as tough as Ellie is, she's still lived a mostly sheltered life in the safety of the Boston QZ. Ellie may be able to handle herself well enough against Infected, but she can easily be outmatched by the living as evidenced by her conflict with David and his group.
So, when Joel becomes severely injured at the university, Ellie is faced with the prospect of reaching the Fireflies alone. Ellie barely makes it out of the university with Joel, but it's not long before Joel's injuries get the better of him. Ellie's pleas are heartbreaking and drive home just how much she cares about Joel in an episode that already goes a long way to selling that. Ellie is scared. Not only is she scared she won't be able to survive without Joel, she's scared that she won't want to survive.
