Pedro Pascal had a curt response to a member of the paparazzi questioning him about The Last of Us’s LGBT+ storylines.
*Warning – spoilers ahead for The Last of Us*
The HBO TV adaptation of the popular video game has featured two queer love stories in its first season. The first was an episode dedicated to survivors Bill and Frank (Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett) and the second showed the beginnings of a romance between Bella Ramsey’s Ellie and Storm Reid’s Riley.
The show’s star, Pedro Pascal (Joel), was recently approached by a TMZ paparazzo in West Hollywood, Los Angeles, where he was quizzed about the show’s themes.
“Can I ask: What do you say to the people who don’t want to see the LGBT character love stories?” the photographer asks as Pascal moves away from his car.
“They do!” he shouts in response.
The footage then cuts to Pascal returning to his car where the paparazzo once again asks: “Why is it so important that LGBTQ+ characters are on TV shows?”
Pascal replies: “I think you’re asking the question because you know why it’s so important.”
Refusing to give up, the photographer asks: “Can you tell me why?”
“You should know why,” the star responds.
The same day Pascal was confronted by TMZ (Sunday 5 March), the actor posted a photo of a progress pride flag on his Instagram with the caption: “The answer my friend is blowin’ in the wind. #LGBTQIA.”
Social media users hurried to support Pascal after a fan account for the actor shared TMZ’s clip on Twitter.
“He handled this with grace and I applaud him for that,” one person said.
“He's got such lovely manners and such a great attitude. Can't say the same for the reporter who's asking him questions,” raved another.
The Mandalorian star has been an outspoken LGBT+ ally since his younger sister came out as trans in 2021.
Pascal’s The Last of Us costar Ramsey identifies as non-binary, recently revealing that she wore a chest binder for “90 per cent” of the filming process.
She said she shared many conversations with her “super supportive” co-star Pascal regarding sexuality and gender.
“They weren’t always deep: they could be funny and humorous, the whole spectrum. We were just very honest and open with each other,” Ramsey said.
The Last of Us finale airs 12 February on HBO Max in the US and 13 February on Sky Atlantic in the UK.
