Isabela Merced is one of several new cast members leading the second season of The Last of Us. Her character, Dina, is already beloved by fans of the video game on which the HBO show is based. To watch the first episode of the new season is to totally understand why: Amid all the misfortune and horror surrounding the protagonists, Dina, in fact, has a sense of humor. “She’s like a light in darkness, she has this balance that I also have in my personal life. When something bad happens, I’m the first to make a joke,” Merced tells Vogue.
Merced, of Peruvian descent, came to the series when she was summoned by show writers Craig Mazin and Neil Druckmann to meet with them, without knowing what the project was about. “They let me know a week later that they wanted to work with me for the role of Dina,” she says.
The actor has already forged a promising career with roles in Madame Web and Alien: Romulus (both 2024), but it’s the The Last of Us that has opened up thrilling new terrain and audiences: HBO reported the series with records of 1.2 billion minutes watched by audiences in 2023. Season two’s debut saw viewing records up 10 per cent from season one’s premiere. We’re set to see much more of Merced, as Dina will take the lead in the story alongside Ellie (Bella Ramsey) and Abby (Kaitlyn Dever).
The Last of Us was already a universe Merced knows well. "Being a fan of the video game and then getting into the series is very crazy,” she shares, “having that knowledge and walking around the set, looking and knowing all the details, was an honor. Even the dance scene is almost the same as in the video game, shot-for-shot.”
Dina starts out as Ellie’s best friend, but eventually, things get more intimate. The dance scene at the end of the just-released first episode marks an upward change in direction for their relationship. With their first kiss, they’re already resisting tropes and clichés about LGBTQ+ relationships. “The apocalypse started in 2003, when queer culture wasn’t as accepted,” she explains. “It’s interesting to see it in this context, when it seems like they didn’t have any preconceived notions about being queer, it just is the way it is. It’s great to see how their natural relationship builds. And I think Dina being bisexual is also an interesting dynamic that I haven’t seen as much explored in the media. That they’re both protagonists in the series, as an ensemble, and that they’re represented in this way, is great.”
Isabela Merced and Bella Ramsey’s chemistry is unmatched. There’s something very curious and innocent about their dynamic: Dina comes across as much more jovial next to Ellie, who has lived multiple lives at 19. In some ways, this is a good metaphor for the experience of Ramsey, of whom their co-star speaks with particular admiration. “I asked them for some advice before we started the series because they are more familiar [to the] set,” she says, “being part of a series with so many fans and with so much power on the Internet is very difficult. After seeing [Ramsey] in their natural environment and navigating all the things that come with being a lead character in a huge franchise, I have so much respect for them. I can’t imagine being in that position, I feel lucky to be the [second season]. I don’t make a big deal out of it [laughs]. I hope Bella knows I have their back.”
But Merced has also had a stratospheric trajectory to get here. While filming The Last of Us, she was also working on another of her upcoming projects, Superman (2025), and promoting Madame Web and Alien: Romulus. The actor is one of the burgeoning next generation of women in the action and sci-fi genres, already a deft hand at playing complex women. “Women are resourceful and they’re also very soft at the same time,” says Merced. “I saw my mom and how she struggled in life and overcame all the obstacles. That’s the most interesting thing for me: To see women in these spaces that are so horrific and so difficult, because they bring tenderness to these situations, and seeing that dynamic duality gives you movies and series with very interesting scenes.”
Isabela Merced joins Pedro Pascal (Joel Miller), Gabriel Luna (Tommy Miller), and Danny Ramirez (Manny Alvarez) in a Latino-rooted cast for The Last of Us. It’s something she speaks of with pride: “I’m Peruvian from Ohio and that’s something very unique. I love talking about my two cultures, I want to represent my country.” To see Latino talent in a series with such a large scope is to be celebrated. For Merced, The Last of Us goes far beyond being a story about an apocalypse. “Each chapter feels like a therapy session,” she says. “it gives you the opportunity to see your problems in a mirror.”