There’s scene-stealers, and then there’s Elaine Miles in the sixth episode of HBO’s The Last of Us.
Her character Florence, whose house Joel and Ellie invade, didn’t even have to move from her seat to become an instant hit with fans of the show. One Reddit post hits the nail right on the head by inquiring if any other character in history has become so quickly adored with so little screen time.
Florence’s hilarious indifference to the fact that Joel and Ellie have taken over her home — and are holding her at gunpoint — was played to perfection by Miles. She even made them soup! Her one-liners are definitely leading the race for best of the season, with “Fireflies? We get those in the summer,” and “the gun’s all the way over there” battling out for top honors.
If Miles’ face looks familiar, you probably know her from Alaska-set CBS drama from the 90s Northern Exposure, in which she played receptionist Marilyn Whirlwind — like Florence, another woman of few words. In The Last of Us, Miles shared her scene with legendary Indigenous Canadian actor Graham Green, who played her husband Marlon.
The couple are intercepted at their cabin in the middle of the snowy Wyoming forest by Joel and Ellie, who seem to believe politely asking for directions won’t do, so they threaten the two with a gun. Florence and Marlon ominously bring up the “river of death” and how Joel and Ellie should stay well away from it — advice they promptly ignore. Ellie then steals one of the rabbits Marlon has just come back from hunting, which is kind of rude.
It’s likely we won’t see Miles and Green again in The Last Of Us, but we’ll still be watching every episode hoping to be proven wrong. New episodes air Sunday nights on HBO.
