Ben-DutkaNaughty Dog said they "just didn't see it" when they created the character of Ellie for their new highly acclaimed video game, The Last Of Us .
They were referring to the likeness between Ellie and actress Ellen Page. Oddly, just about everyone saw that similarity when the teaser trailer debuted, which resulted in plenty of rumors that Page was indeed the actress who plays Ellie.
However, as we know now, Page is not the actress; it's Ashley Johnson, who did an amazing job. The developers even said they altered Ellie's face to reflect more of Johnson. But Page still thinks Naughty Dog "ripped off" her likeness, as she said on Reddit :
"I guess I should be flattered that they ripped off my likeness, but I am actually acting in a video game called Beyond Two Souls, so it was not appreciated."
Page is indeed the lead actress in Quantic Dream's upcoming title, Beyond: Two Souls , which is slated to launch October 8 exclusively on the PlayStation 3. She plays Jodie Holmes and the virtual character looks a lot like her. As for Naughty Dog, creative director Neil Druckmann posted the following clarification on Twitter :
"Ellie from The Last of Us was perfectly played by @TheVulcanSalute. No one could've done a better job. Please go follow her and retweet."
If I look closely at Ellie, I'm not really seeing Page. I think they made enough alterations to the character to make those differences plain. So, we're hoping Page isn't too annoyed.
Related Game(s): The Last Of Us
There are some small differences but all white people look the same…
yea we do especially white women around that age
lol
Whoa,whoa,whoa……
You know, I wasn't impressed when they used my likeness to make Kratos.
But I got over it.
You need to get more sun. 🙂
This is so funny! You can argue that every person has a double. Also every game made to date with real life characters, not anime, has characters that look like someone in the world. Disappointed in her for thinking like this.
I dont think she looks like Page much either. I think Page spoke out of order here, and probably shouldnt have spoken publicly about it. This makes her look egotistical, like shes doing something above The Last of Us somehow.
Ellie really has her own identity here, she doesnt have Page's wide face, and has little traits from Johnson as well. In game Ellie really does have an identity of her own.
Ellie looks more like Ellen Page than she does Ashley Johnson. Also, she doesn't seem egotistical at all. Just pointing out that she actually worked hard on another video game that's also being released. One that will be a better game, in my opinion.
Well I guess first of all, I dont care who she looks like more of. I personally dont think she looks like either that much for us or anyone else to argue about. But Pages wide face really shows that Ellies physique was based more on Ashley Johnsons. Maybe earlier on she looked more like Page than now, but again some traits from both but not enough for Page to say what she did.
I do understand how it could come off like you put it, and im certainly not debating how hard she worked or is working on Beyond, but it was egotistical for her, to me, to come out in public like she did and to say they "ripped off" her likeness. She had no place to say that. She said it bcause shes in the public eye.
And I have no idea why yoy brought up Beyond being better. But if you want my opinion it wont be better. It will be great, it will be genre defining, and it certainly is now on top of my most anticipated list, but it will not accomplish what The Last of Us has.
So there! 😉
Funny how opinions work huh?!
Last edited by bigrailer19 on 6/24/2013 1:06:39 PM
I know I'm gunna come across as an as*hole by saying this, and I might well be wrong, but I think you just watched a walkthrough of TLOU on youtube. The way you talk about the game, it's the only thing that makes sense in my mind. Sorry.
Liam, you don't come across like an a-hole. Just the typical person who can't respect someone having a difference of opinion about a game. The Last of Us has not one single gameplay element that hasn't been seen in a game before it. It's been said and no one can dispute it because it's true. I can't exalt a game, no matter how well done, when the gameplay isn't taking anything to the next level. This is a survival game that you can carry 8 weapons at a time in. Huh? Where even guys with body armor can be punched out exactly the same as people with none. Huh? I've blown a guy's head off and his partner will still search for me in the other room. Dat AI, son. It is a game streamlined and catered to casuals. I can see why it's so appealing to some…
BigRailer, you're definitely welcome to your opinion on Beyond: Two Souls vs. Last of Us. I encourage it! I won't get mad or offended if someone doesn't like something as I do. Not sure why that's an issue for others….
Last edited by n/a on 6/24/2013 2:21:01 PM
You got my point then, that opinions are just that and everyone has one.
But you truly are missing the large part of why The Last of Us is so good and being considered as great as it is. You keep referring to gameplay and quite honestly thats an easy thing to dispute. But nonetheless the gameplay is super solid even if it is nothing new. But the game is built upon superb mechanics, gameplay, sound and control, and the end result delivers an impactful experience. An experience you just dont get anywhere else.Its more than playing a masterpiece, this game is surreal. If you dont see that, its easy to understand why you praise games like Wolverine and Deadpool that dont even come close to standing up to a game like The Last of Us.
@KidPresentable, Sure TLOU didn't usher in new gameplay but what game in the last few years has? Also it did bring gaming to a whole new level in terms of storytelling and characters, and solidified gaming as a legitimate avenue for literary expression.
Also how can you say a game will be better when you haven't even played it yet? I agree that based on what we've seen it has the potential to give TLOU a run for it's money for GOTY.
If "revolutionary" was a requirement to warrent a perfect score then no games would get perfect scores. The Last of Us nailed what it set out to do so that's why it got 74 perfect scores out of 108 reviews.
Annd, if Beyond is anything like Heavy Rain(glitches and screen tearing aside) it will be a good game but better than The Last of Us it will not.
Last edited by Jawknee on 6/24/2013 3:17:37 PM
I'd respect your opinion if it made sense.
"The Last of Us has not one single gameplay element that hasn't been seen in a game before it."
I don't get this! Who goes into THIS game and comes out with THAT reaction!? Anyway, what did you think of the crafting system? How slickly they used UI so you do it in real-time, and you get a real sense of tension when you need something. Never felt that in a game before.
"This is a survival game that you can carry 8 weapons at a time in. Huh? Where even guys with body armor can be punched out exactly the same as people with none. Huh? I've blown a guy's head off and his partner will still search for me in the other room."
Seriously!? Was this your first reaction "OMG I can carry 8 weapons how lame". I can tell if you could only carry two weapons you'd be the one of the first to complain how unrealistic it is/ how it restricts the gameplay. And the A.I situation you speak of, without context, just sounds like a glitch. Weird *hit happend to me as well – but I just do not get how you can get such…negative points from the game.
I get the concept of having an opinion, but I truly can't understand yours; I was in awe of every second of my experiance.
I didn't see anything in Liam's first response to indicate he's a guy who can't respect another's opinion.
I mean… Kid, he's got a point. You try to justify your point of view by listing things that just… aren't really true. I'm playing my first playthrough on hard, and I gotta tell you… there's not much room for error. I can only imagine what the next difficulty will be like when it unlocks!
Sure, by end game you carry 8 weapons, but your melee weapons break -OFTEN-… and even though you have a variety of guns… you -REALLY- need to make every…. bullet… count. Miss 2 or 3 shots and you're out of ammo with a clicker about to rip out your jugular.
You make it sound like you're freaking Rambo, which couldn't be further from the truth. I have to echo Liam… it genuinely just sounds like you're watching a youtube playthrough on Easy mode.
Kid, you've said The Last Of Us doesn't do anything revolutionary about a dozen times. Xbox bias gettin' to you, or can you not help yourself? This news piece warranted no opinion on the game itself, did it?
Ben- yes it's.my overwhelming Xbox bias. I'm taking pulls for that. But, honestly,I shouldn't have said that Beyond was going to be better than Last of Us.I should have stayed on topic. I apologize for that.
Liam- if I could only carry one weapon in the game, it would have been awesome. I've been clear before that I feel that ND didn't go far enough to make it feel like I was trying to survive and fight for my life. I wish they had done more.
BigRailer- I never heaped praise on Wolverine or Deadpool. I said they were good games. Nothing fancy, just good. I also pointed out that they weren't on the level of a extraordinary game, Arkham Asylum.. So, because of games I love like Heavy Rain and Red Dead, that means I can't enjoy anything else?
Underdog- you say nothing I say is true. Is it true that there is no distinction between punching a guy with body armor and a helmet and a normally clothed guy. Yes that's true. And you've already confirmed that you can carry 8 weapons, just like I said. So, come back when you got something, ok? As far as the game being hard on hard mode….wow I don't think that had happened in any other game ever. Try Vanquish on God Hard, then you'll know what it's like to have to make every bullet count, even when you have a thousand.
Last edited by n/a on 6/24/2013 5:02:27 PM
Kid-
I didnt say you couldnt like anything else, not even close in fact. What I said and more importantly meant was that if those are the types of games you enjoy I can see why you wouldnt get what makes The Last of Us special because they are worlds apart.
The reason I say you praised those games is because when you spoke (typed) about them you had more to say about the great things they had going for them in one paragraph then you ever have for The Last of Us. You didnt say one negative and any thing that could be considered you covered it up with something else. The Last of Us anything good theres always a bad when you talk about it.
He's the king of straw men and putting words in people's mouths Big.
BR
That actually makes it worse. lol. I don't understand how you could come to that conclusion considering, I've already said before that Heavy Rain is my favorite game this generation,, and Shadow of the Colossus is my favorite game of all time. Those two are polar opposites of Wolverine and Deadpool. I'm not cursed with that affliction that I can only get enjoyment out of one type of game. Whatever mood strikes, that's what I play. You know what I played after I finished Last of Us? Rumble Roses XX. No rhyme or reason to it. I looked on the shelf and I decided to play it. So, I understand the Last of Us was aiming for. A sense of dread hopelessness, and fighting and clawing to make sense in a dying world. I get it. I really do. And if it were a movie or a novel, it would have done its job well. But a game needs gameplay, and it should match that narrative as close as it possibly can. TLoU didn't do that, in my opinion.
If you want to me to criticize Deadpool to make you feel like I'm being fair to Last o of Us, ok. But, honestly, saying it's not on the level Arkham Asylum implies there are issues. Those issues being it's a bit too short, gameplay is standard fare, the voice acting is pretty mediocre, besides Nolan North, and the graphics leave a lot to be desired. Still, it's an entertaining game. Does that suit you?
Last edited by n/a on 6/24/2013 10:46:54 PM
Jawknee
The other day you told me not to respond to you. Now you can't get enough of me. Someone got a lil crush? Can't blame you. Me being a king and all….
Just informing my good friend here what a waste of time it is trying to reason with someone who just can't get enough of his straw men. You have a whole field of them to knock down, now GO!
Actually, I think Railer and I were having a pretty cordial back and forth until you butted in.
Your first comment on this little thread was revolutionary this and perfect scores that when no one had even said the game didn't deserve its accolades. Or when you labeled me as MS shill with no true knowledge(kind of like your game discussions) when we were just talking about online passes. If anyone is truly familiar with straw men, it's you, you hypocrite. You're telling blank guy that he's negative and you're the most rude, hateful poster around, disparaging games and systems you've never really played. So quit embarrassing yourself, stop being such hypocrite, leave me alone, and get a life. I mean that, like stop reading this, and go get one.. .
Last edited by n/a on 6/24/2013 11:40:32 PM
Stooooop. Jawknee, Kid, give it a rest.
Yeah… I don't get how someone could miss what I said so badly.
I thought Ellie looked like Ellen Page, and if you were bored enough you can find an article where I said as much around the time LoU was announced here on PSX. The character sounds like Ellen Page and has the same kind of dialogue as characters she has played in film.
Earlier character designs look even more like Ellen Page whereas the Ellie that made it into the game looks like they did try to alter her enough to pull the "not intentional" card.
I will go on record as saying I absolutely love The Last of Us, probably one of my all time favourites and definitely in the top three of this generation. That said, I am betting that the character was inspired and maybe even written with Ellen Page in mind, heck maybe even written for her. Beyond wasn't announced yet and seeing as how both QD and ND are under Sony, they may have heard through the rumour mill that Ellen Page would be working on an in-house production and assumed it would be theirs.
Ashley Johnson was cast very early in the production of TLOU, and it started production just post-Uncharted 2.
I know you're not trying to be against TLOU, but Naughty Dog don't write dialouge for a particular person; they don't work that way. They have a mindset to create wholesomely original characters, because they have incredibly talented people/artists.
As for the 'remodel', I think that's because making video games is an iterative process. Naughty Dog even say it themselves, nothing comes together until the game is in its final stages.
Annnnd, if you've played the game, Ellie shares ZERO likeliness with Ellen Paige; she is very much inspired by her actor. This accusation that she has been 'ripped off', massively undermines Ashley's performance in TLOU, which was incredible. As someone else said, pretty disappointed.
Yea, unfortunately for Ashley her performance is being diminished with this response. Luckily ND realized that based on their response in the article and pointed out how great Ashley was, which was fantastic.
I like Ashley quite a bit. She hasn't acted in much lately(small roll in the Avengers was the last that I know of) but she's a great entrepreneur and musician.
There was an article months ago about one of the companies having to change the appearance of their characters because it looked so much like Page. If I am correct ….. it was Naughty Dog.
End of line.
I don't really see it either, at least not beyond the very average appearance of both.
I mean, isn't that how Ellen Page has made her career? By looking very much like an average, every day, girl-next-door type? If so, and she's a sort of "everywoman" in appearance, isn't it plausible that it's just a coincidence, or at least an unconscious decision on NG's part because maybe they saw her in a movie just before designing Ellie, and it just happened to fall out that way?
I dunno. Either way, not the classiest of responses on her part, in my opinion.
That was kind of my point, that regardless, her response was very snobbish. Like shes trying to say, who do they think they are… although of course thats not what she said. It just came off that way.
She made her career by playing a bratty teenager who got knocked up by that unfunny kid who looks like a bird.
A bird! Lol.
Michael Cera is hilarious.
Ever seen Arrested Development? Or Superbad? Or Scott Pilgrim? Yeah, he's typecast, but he's perfect in that type of role.
Besides… with all the Canadians in that movie, you know I gotta stick up for it. :p
Plus, Page is from the same area as me. Born in the same hospital, in fact.
Last edited by Underdog15 on 6/24/2013 4:26:41 PM
Yes, and they're all unfunny, easily forgettable rolls. Playing the same insecure teenager who's afraid of girls doesn't exactly register on the hilarity scale. It was kinda funny in Arrested Development but got old by the second season.
It's definitely usually an over-the-top character, but all the characters in those are less "real" characters and more representations of very specific human conditions. So long as it fits the mood of the production, which they do, I can accept it and exist within the absurd worlds created.
She not only looks like her, but she's named after her ("Ellie" from "Ellen"), and the earlier version of "Ellie" even looked more like Ellen, until they made her look a bit younger (i believe there was a psxextreme article on that). My guess is they were hoping to recruit her for the role, until Quantic Dreams scooped her up for their project.
People who can't see the obvious similarity either have impaired facial-recognition mental faculty, or are just playing dumb.
Last edited by Shams on 6/24/2013 12:56:55 PM
I just dont see it like a lot of people do. However its hard to ignore the traits, but I still see traits of Johnson as well. But I just dont see it being some how a replicate which it seems people are making it out to be. Now whether or not Ellie really is based of Ellen we probably will never really know.
However I stand by my point that Ellie does have her own identity in game and thats whats really clear to me.
The original version in the reveal trailer arguably looked like her but not the final version that made it into the game. But since I don't agree with you I must be retarded or dumb or something….
Jawknee –
You have what is called "impaired facial-recognition mental faculty".
Brad Pitt Syndrome? Can't recognize faces. It's a thing. Look it up!
No matter what Ms Page could've handled this better. Especially within the walls of PlayStation Exclusives this should have been contained. Not a major issue. Just an actress practicing her divaness. Even if it is only to a slight degree.
Sorry to hurt your feelings boys. I guess my remark was unnecessarily harsh.
The community has gotten bit snarky here, though, in the past couple years. Not quite sure why that is. Getting old and grouchy, I guess?
You aren't the only one who's noticed. Everyone is acting so butt hurt over Ellen Page's comment. It's pretty childish.
No one is "butt hurt", she made the comment, expect people to react.
Im reacting by saying shes acting childish, amd snobbish. Im not somehow upset or affected by it. Just thing it was uncalled for.
Big, have you read the reddit post? Or are you just going by what was posted here on psx? In no way was her comment directed negatively toward the Last of Us, Neil or Ashley. Folks are acting "childish" by calling her a snob. Reading comprehension, sometimes we can't tell how a person really feels or is coming off as based on text alone, but we should all know by now what type of character she is. Take a look at all her Beyond interviews and well most of the characters she plays.
Well, it is PSXExtreme for a reason.