Why Ellie Gets Emotional While Playing Guitar in The Last of Us Season 2 Episode 5?

Nivedita Dubey
May 12, 2025

Summary:

Ellie plays “Future Days” in The Last of Us Season 2, Episode 5, triggering deep emotional grief.
The Pearl Jam song was the first Joel played for Ellie in Jackson, linking it to their bond.
Ellie’s sadness stems from unresolved trauma and the pain of Joel’s death.

In The Last of Us season 2, episode 5, Ellie has a rare quiet moment in the theater where she attempts to play guitar. But unlike the joyful scene in the previous episode’s music store, this time is different. The guitar brings out a deep wave of grief tied to Joel’s memory, exposing Ellie’s emotional wounds just before the episode plunges into brutal action.

Why Does Ellie Get Emotional Playing Guitar in Episode 5?

In The Last of Us season 2, episode 5, Ellie picks up a guitar alone onstage in the theater. While she played a-ha’s “Take on Me” with a smile in the music store just one episode earlier, her attempt to strum “Future Days” by Pearl Jam is filled with sorrow. She quickly stops, overwhelmed by emotion.

This scene isn’t just filler—it’s a major emotional checkpoint. The guitar is more than just an instrument for Ellie. It’s a symbol of her bond with Joel. In season 1, Joel promised to teach her how to play the guitar. By season 2, that promise is now a painful memory. As Ellie sits alone in the dim theater, trying to play “Future Days”, she’s forced to confront her loss. The song becomes too much for her to bear, and the grief visibly takes over.

How Is “Future Days” Connected to Joel in The Last of Us?

Pedro Pascal as Joel in The Last of Us Season 2

The song Ellie begins to play—“Future Days”—has deep roots in both the show and the original video game. While the episode doesn’t flash back, long-time fans recognize the moment instantly. “Future Days” was the first song Joel ever played for Ellie after giving her a guitar in Jackson. In The Last of Us Part II, this song becomes a recurring motif symbolizing Joel’s love, protection, and the emotional legacy he left behind.

Every time Ellie strums the first few chords of “Future Days”, she’s remembering Joel. In the show, the producers gave the song further significance by using it as the title of the season 2 premiere. Though the song technically came out in 2013—after the pandemic began in The Last of Us timeline—its emotional weight made it a necessary part of the adaptation.

The lyrics reinforce this connection. The line, “If I ever were to lose you, I’d surely lose myself,” speaks directly to Joel’s internal reasoning for saving Ellie from the Fireflies. When Joel first sang it, it reflected how much he couldn’t imagine life without her. Now, when Ellie sings it, it mirrors her spiral after losing him.

Why Is “Future Days” So Painful for Ellie to Play?

Bella Ramsey as Ellie in The Last of Us Season 2

Joel’s death has left Ellie emotionally shattered, and that trauma surfaces in small but telling ways—like this moment in the theater. While she’s focused on revenge throughout season 2, Ellie rarely allows herself to openly mourn Joel. Instead of confronting her grief, she buries it beneath rage and obsession.

The moment she begins playing “Future Days”, it all resurfaces. Her sadness turns quickly to anger, showing that her wounds are still raw. The guitar becomes a physical reminder of what she lost. She can’t even make it through the opening line. The weight of Joel’s absence becomes unbearable.

The theater may seem like a calm before the storm, but emotionally, it’s one of the most intense scenes of the episode. This is not just Ellie playing music—it’s her struggling to connect with a part of herself she can no longer reach. The inability to finish the song is symbolic of her unresolved grief and the inner turmoil that continues to haunt her journey.