Bella Ramsey came out of nowhere to slay a giant and leave a lasting
impression on everyone they've ever worked with. No doubt about it,
their life changed forever after appearing in the biggest show on the planet.
Bella Ramsey was born on September 25, 2003 in Nottingham, England,
where they fell in love with acting when they were just three years old and joined
their older sister to perform for their family. After acting in some local stage productions,
Ramsey was accepted into the Television Workshop, which has been a stepping stone
for several working British actors. They were just ten years old at the time. Less than a year later,
Ramsey auditioned for the role of Lady Lyanna Mormont on Game of Thrones.
They ended up booking the gig, and thus their first professional onscreen role
was pretty much on the biggest TV show in the world. In 2019,
Ramsey spoke with The Guardian about their time shooting Season 6 and revealed,
"The first day, we filmed on horses, just before the Battle of the Bastards.
That was amazing. A member of the crew pointed at the grass and said,
‘You know someone got employed to place those tufts of grass in very specific places?'"
When Bella Ramsey auditioned for Game of Thrones,
they really impressed showrunners D.B. Weiss and David Benioff as well as Mark Mylod,
who directed their debut episode, "The Broken Man." As Mylod told The Hollywood Reporter,
"She walked in for the casting reading and we were
knocked completely sideways. It was one of those moments where you go, 'Oh my God,
what a star.' You could not wish to meet a more delightful young lady."
Ramsey was only 11 when they filmed their initial scenes. Pretty much all of their
co-workers were shocked at how competent they were right from the get-go. Co-workers were
prepared for a long day to help a young actor learn how to get through a complex production,
but Ramsey only needed a half hour of rehearsal before shooting began. As Mylod also admitted,
"Of course, the rest of us felt deeply ashamed, because she knew every single word and every
single inflection. [...] The level of talent there is so ridiculous. She's someone we're going
to look back on in 20 years, and she's going to be ruling Hollywood. She's just amazing."
"You will not break faith today."
Lyanna Mormont was originally only supposed to appear in one episode of Season 6 of Game
of Thrones. But Bella Ramsey ended up impressing the showrunners so much that they expanded their
role through the rest of the series' run. D.B. Weiss spoke about working with the young actor
during the "Inside the Episode" special following Season 8's "The Long Night."
"And then we met Bella Ramsey, and we realized that we would not be doing
our jobs if we kept her as a one-scene character."
Simply put, if not for Weiss and Benioff's keen instincts about Ramsey's talent,
Game of Thrones would've missed out on countless memorable moments from Lady Lyanna.
Game of Thrones employed plenty of child actors during its eight-season run, though of course
it isn't exactly a kids' show. When Bella Ramsey started playing Lyanna Mormont, they were easily
the youngest person on set and continued to be for most of their time on the show. There were
some other children in the background in Seasons 7 and 8, but Ramsey was carrying a more significant
workload with the number of scenes they appeared in and amount of dialogue they had to remember.
Ramsey's time on Game of Thrones ultimately helped them realize
that they were much more comfortable around older people, and that working
with adults was easier than working with kids. As they told The Guardian in 2023,
"I'm neurodivergent and that's part of why I feel more understood by adults.
It didn't faze me at all. Being around kids my own age would have been so much harder."
Ramsey is no longer a teeanger, but they still have a strong sense of camaraderie with many
of their older collaborators. That includes Craig Mazin, the showrunner of The Last of Us,
as the two of them kept each other anchored through the dark moments of a very serious show.
Because Game of Thrones had such a sprawling plot, certain prominent members of the cast
never shared any screen time with each other. Many of the characters ended up
converging in the final two seasons, although that wasn't the case for everyone. As Lyanna,
Bella Ramsey generally found themself in the North of Westeros,
so they naturally appeared with other people who spent much of their time
in the North. This included Liam Cunningham as Ser Davos and Kit Harington as Jon Snow.
In a 2020 interview with Metro, Ramsey explained that these two
co-stars made sure to guide them during their time on the show. As they put it,
"I learnt a lot from them about interviews and about how to go about them and to just
be yourself. They were obviously aware that I was going to have to be doing some,
so they helped me by preparing me for it."
And in turn, Harington and Cunningham have only ever had wonderful things
to say about Ramsey. As Cunningham told The Hollywood Reporter in 2016,
"There's an old adage about how actors should never work with children or animals,
but that's B.S. When kids are as good as this young lady is,
it's a joy to play opposite. She was absolutely amazing."
Bella Ramsey was basically the breakout star of Game of Thrones Season 6,
as their debut episode aired at the height of the show's popularity. With this newfound fame,
they went from being an everyday kid with a passion for the arts to an international
sensation pretty much overnight. Beforehand, Ramsey had to keep their part on the show
a secret from everyone except their immediate family and their best friend.
As time went on and Lady Lyanna continued to make an impression throughout the last three seasons,
Ramsey got recognized more and more. They were even often called "m'lady"
by strangers on the street. As Ramsey admitted to The Guardian in 2019,
"It was madness."
"Do you get asked about Game of Thrones all the time now?"
"I do." "Yeah."
It was overwhelming for the young Ramsey. Clearly they were making a positive impression,
though, as they were adored far and wide within the fanbase.
Bella Ramsey has never been interested in acting just for the sake of being a celebrity. Instead,
they love inhabiting complex characters and learning more about themself and others
through artistic expression. As Ramsey insisted to the Nottingham Post in 2019,
"I never wanted to act to be famous."
Ramsey has leaned into the trappings of a high-profile acting career,
but only out of necessity. As they explained,
"People were setting up fake accounts on social media pretending to be me. One of
them had swearing in the bio and people were saying 'you shouldn't be swearing!'
But it wasn't me. That's why I had to set up official Twitter and Instagram accounts."
Ramsey appreciates fans who are respectful and the positive attention that they receive. But
it can be frustrating at times when they want to support their loved ones in their own moments.
Ever since being cast as Ellie on The Last of Us, Ramsey has experienced an increased volume
in negative attention. That has mostly come from fans of the video game that the show is based on,
as they don't look exactly like the original animated Ellie. This has especially frustrated
Last of Us creator Craig Mazin, who has gone on record about how protective he feels of Ramsey.
While Bella Ramsey probably wouldn't describe themself as especially outgoing
or assertive in their own life, they definitely felt strong and
fierce while playing Lyanna Mormont. As they revealed to The Cut in 2019,
"I like how strong she is — mentally, physically, personality-wise. I like how she sticks up for
what she believes in, no matter the cost or the consequences. I really admire her confidence,
how she can just stand up without flinching in front of all those people."
Ramsey loves acting because it offers them the opportunity to
explore characters unlike themself. A project's prestige, or lack thereof,
doesn't matter to them when choosing which gigs to pursue. As they told the Nottingham Post,
"I just enjoy any roles that are interesting, playing multi-layered characters."
Playing Lyanna helped Ramsey build their own confidence both as an actor
and as a young adult, and they weren't disappointed with their
character's grisly death. As they admitted to Entertainment Weekly,
"I wanted to either end up on the Iron Throne or have a really good death. So I'm happy."
The small but mighty Lyanna slayed a giant with a warrior's cry right before succumbing to her
injuries, so it makes sense that Ramsey was satisfied with such a brave ending.
"You die. I was like, what? But I, I was happy with it."
"What a weird life, right?" "I know. Right."
It's clear that Bella Ramsey's talent stands on its own. Just ask anyone who's ever worked with
them, and they'll pretty much invariably sing their praises. Ramsey's time on Game
of Thrones unquestionably helped them get a lot of visibility that might've
taken a bit longer if they hadn't been on the most popular show on the planet.
And so, when Craig Mazin was reviewing audition tapes for the part of Ellie in The Last of Us,
he couldn't help but recognize Ramsey. As he admitted to Elle in 2023,
"I was like, 'oh s---, it's Lady Mormont.'"
Mazin was able to set aside his fanboy excitement to fairly assess the quality
of Bella's audition. And ultimately, realizing that they were the right one to play Ellie was
just a confirmation of the talent that he'd already seen from watching Game of Thrones.
"When we saw Bella's audition, it was, that's it, we're done, we got it. She's Ellie."
Bella Ramsey struggled to make friends throughout their childhood,
and the fame that came with their acting career only made that even more difficult. Ultimately,
they were just never really happy at school. As they explained to The Standard in 2019,
"Everyone was put in a box. There was no room for personalization."
Ramsey just couldn't be comfortable in an environment that was beholden to certain
social and academic norms that didn't necessarily work for everyone. So they
tried homeschooling for a while, but when that didn't work for them either,
they enrolled in Interhigh, which is essentially a high school that takes place entirely online.
Interhigh allowed Ramsey to keep a flexible schedule to accommodate their acting career
without sacrificing their education. They were also able to bond with their Interhigh classmates,
which helped them avoid missing out on the important social aspects of
school. Now that Ramsey's done with the British equivalent of K-12 schooling,
they have a much easier time connecting with their peers. And ultimately, they look back
on their decision to stop attending a traditional school as the right one.
The relationship between Joel and Ellie on HBO's The Last of Us is the heart of the story and the
most resonant element for many fans who have played the video game or watched the show. Joel
becomes a father to Ellie, and she becomes a daughter to him. Thus, it was absolutely
essential for the success of the show that Bella Ramsey and Pedro Pascal could successfully convey
that bond on screen. Luckily, that task was made a little easier by some shared history.
After getting cast as Joel and Ellie, Pascal and Ramsey were able to quickly
connect thanks to their experiences on Game of Thrones. Although Pascal's character died
a few seasons before Lyanna Mormont showed up, the two actors were able
to bond over their time in Westeros. As Pascal told Entertainment Weekly in 2023,
"I feel like it made us come from a family without knowing each other already. To have two characters
that the fans liked make their entrance and make their exit is parallel for the both of us and a
kind of bonding thing before we even got [the] chance to bond. So, yes, I am grateful for that."
Now that Pascal and Ramsey have successfully managed to forge a deep connection on The
Last of Us, viewers are surely just as grateful that they had that opportunity.