“The Last of Us” – Ashley Johnson (Ellie in the Video Games!) Stars in the Season Finale [Image]

The penultimate episode of “The Last of Us” Season 1 featured an appearance from Troy Baker (who plays Joel in the games) in a new role, and now it’s Ashley Johnson‘s turn.

Ashley Johnson, who plays Ellie in the video games the HBO series is based on, will be appearing in this Sunday’s season finale as Anna, the mother of Ellie (Bella Ramsey)!

In the games, Johnson provides the voice and motion capture for Ellie.

Deadline explains, “Within The Last of Us lore, little is known about Anna outside of her friendship with Marlene, leader of the Fireflies, and her death soon after giving birth to Ellie, leaving behind her favorite switchblade and a personal note, which Ellie carries in her backpack. However, knowing that series showrunner Craig Mazin and creator Neil Druckmann share a penchant for expanding and differentiating from the source material, we can expect to gather more information about who Anna is and possibly unlock the secrets behind Ellie’s immunity.”

Check out your first look at Ashley Johnson as Ellie’s mom above!

Season 1, Episode 9 brings the first season to an end on March 12 at 9pm EST, with Joel and Ellie finally arriving at their destination and the events of the first video game reaching their conclusion. The season has largely been a faithful adaptation of the original game so fans likely know where this is headed, and the trailer is home to some of those familiar sights.

“There’s no halfway with this. We finish what we started,” Ellie tells Joel in the Season 1 finale trailer, which you’ll find below. And don’t worry, Season 2 is very much on the way!

HBO’s “The Last of Us” takes place twenty years after modern civilization has been destroyed. Joel, a hardened survivor, is hired to smuggle Ellie, a 14-year-old girl, out of an oppressive quarantine zone. What starts as a small job soon becomes a brutal, heartbreaking journey, as they both must traverse across the U.S. and depend on each other for survival.

Pedro Pascal (“The Mandalorian”) stars in the series as Joel and Bella Ramsey (“Game of Thrones”) plays Ellie. Gabriel Luna (Terminator: Dark Fate) plays Tommy, the brother of Pascal’s Joel. Storm Reid, Anna Torv, Jeffrey Pierce, Nick Offerman, Merle Dandridge, Nico Parker, Murray Bartlett and Con O’Neil also star in the first season of the hit series.

Craig Mazin (“Chernobyl”) developed the series for HBO, and worked directly alongside Neil Druckmann to write and executive produce the small screen adaptation.