Rutina Wesley on the role of Maria in ‘The Last Of Us’: “It’s scary to play a character you’re already familiar with.”

Rutina Wesley plays Maria on HBO’s The last of us and she recently admitted that it was a horrible thing to take on the role.

“It’s scary to play a character that’s already established, even if it’s a game,” she said in an interview with Entertainment Weekly. “But I also took on the challenge of playing it my way and put my energy into it to see what people would think of it.”

Wesley joined the series in Episode 6 as Maria, the leader of a settlement where Pedro Pascal’s Joe finds his brother Tommy, played by Gabriel Luna. Maria and Tommy are married with a baby on the way, which is why Wesley’s character is attracted to Bella Ramsey’s Ellie.

“When you finally become a mother, I think she’s naturally drawn to Ellie in that motherly way, without really knowing that she is,” Wesley said. “It’s her instinct because there’s nothing she can do about it. I also think Maria is challenged by Ellie in a way she secretly loves. I think there’s a part of Maria that looks at Ellie like she’s like, ‘Who is this little girl?'”

Mary’s character continues The Last of Us Part II and with HBO confirming a second season, Wesley hopes it will return.

“I look forward to something if they decide to come to me. I’m really excited about this because I had so much fun playing with Gabe. He’s really great,” she added. “It will just be the icing on the cake. It’s enough where it is because it’s a big hit. So if that didn’t happen I’d be great with it because this show is really good.