Dina isn't just a sidekick. When we first meet her in the weed-scented basement of a Jackson library, she feels like a breath of fresh air in a world that has mostly forgotten how to breathe. She's funny. She's sarcastic. She’s observant. But as the 20-plus hours of The Last of Us Part II unfold, it becomes clear that Dina is the most emotionally grounded person in the entire Naughty Dog universe.
Most players focus on the cycle of violence between Ellie and Abby. That makes sense. It’s the engine of the plot. But Dina? Dina is the stakes. She is the living representation of what Ellie is throwing away every time she puts on that backpack and sharpens her switchblade. Honestly, without Dina, Ellie’s journey would just be a hollow descent into madness. Dina provides the "why" for the "how."
The Complexity of Dina in The Last of Us Part II
Dina’s background is messy. She’s a Jewish orphan who survived the collapse of society by being smarter and more adaptable than the people trying to kill her. Unlike Ellie, who was raised in a military FEDRA school, or Abby, who grew up in the structured environment of the Fireflies and later the WLF, Dina has a scrappy, self-taught survival instinct.
She mentions her sister, Talia, who was murdered. This is a crucial detail that many people gloss over. Dina knows exactly what Ellie is feeling. She knows the burning, itchy need for revenge. But Dina chose a different path long before the game starts. She chose Jackson. She chose community.
- She’s a crack shot with a bolt-action rifle.
- She’s an expert scavenger who knows how to find supplies in the ruins of Seattle.
- Her religious heritage adds a layer of depth—her discussions about her faith and her "Hamsa" amulet show a woman holding onto culture when the world has lost its mind.
The chemistry between Shannon Woodward (Dina) and Ashley Johnson (Ellie) isn't just good acting; it's the anchor of the first half of the game. When they’re riding through the overgrown streets of Seattle, the banter isn't just flavor text. It’s building a world worth saving.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Pregnancy Reveal
About a third of the way through the Seattle trek, we find out Dina is pregnant.
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A lot of the "discourse" online when the game launched in 2020 (and even now) treated this like a plot device to get Dina out of the way so Ellie could go solo. That is a massive misunderstanding of the writing by Neil Druckmann and Halley Wegryn Gross.
The pregnancy isn't a "nerf" to Dina’s character. It’s a thematic mirror. While Ellie is obsessed with death and the past (Joel), Dina is literally carrying the future. It forces a pivot in the narrative. Suddenly, the mission isn't just "Kill Abby." It’s "How do I keep my family alive while I’m doing this?"
Dina’s willingness to push through the morning sickness and the exhaustion of the first trimester while navigating a literal war zone between the WLF and the Seraphites is insane. Think about it. She’s trekking through mud, rain, and spores while her body is working overtime. She doesn't complain. She just does it until she physically can't anymore. That's not a weak character. That’s the strongest person in the room.
The Farmhouse: A False Sense of Security
The "Farm" sequence is one of the most debated parts of The Last of Us Part II. After the brutal confrontation at the theater, we skip forward. Everything looks perfect. The lighting is golden. There are sheep. There is a baby, JJ (named after Joel and Jesse).
It’s a dream.
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But for Dina, it’s real. She has built the life that Joel wanted for Ellie. She has created a pocket of peace. When Ellie is suffering from PTSD in the barn—seeing Joel’s face in the shadows—Dina is the one holding the house together. She’s the one doing the chores, raising the kid, and trying to pull Ellie back from the edge.
The tragedy of Dina’s character is that she loves someone who is addicted to trauma. You can see it in her eyes during that final confrontation in the kitchen. She tells Ellie, "I'm not doing this again." It’s not an ultimatum given out of spite. It’s a boundary. Dina knows that if she lets Ellie’s obsession dictate their lives, JJ will grow up without a mother—or worse, he’ll grow up to be just like them.
Why She Left the Farmhouse
When Ellie returns from Santa Barbara, fingers missing and soul crushed, the farmhouse is empty.
Some fans were mad. They thought Dina should have waited. But honestly, why? Dina told her exactly what would happen. By leaving, Dina proves she is the only character in the series who actually understands how to break the cycle of violence. You break it by walking away. You break it by choosing the living over the dead.
Dina isn't just a "love interest." She is the counter-argument to the entire philosophy of the game. If the game is about the "cycle of violence," Dina is the exit ramp.
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Practical Insights for Players and Storytellers
If you're revisiting the game or looking at it from a narrative design perspective, pay attention to these specific elements of Dina's character:
- The Journal Entries: Read Ellie's journal. The poems and sketches of Dina show a side of Ellie she doesn't show anyone else. It proves that Dina is Ellie’s only link to her own humanity.
- Environmental Storytelling: In the Seattle open-world segment, look at how Dina reacts to the synagogues and the letters found in the ruins. She is constantly looking for human connection, while Ellie is looking for tactical advantages.
- Combat Utility: Don't just leave Dina behind. In gameplay, she’s actually one of the most aggressive AI companions Naughty Dog has ever built. She will frequently jump on enemies' backs or finish off targets Ellie has stunned.
- The "Jackson" Perspective: Understand that Dina represents the success of Tommy and Joel’s experiment. Jackson works because people like Dina are willing to forgive the past and work for a better tomorrow.
The legacy of Dina in The Last of Us is one of resilience. She survives the game. In a franchise where characters are discarded like spent shells, Dina’s survival is a radical act. She takes her son, she takes her dignity, and she moves on. Whether she went back to Jackson or found a new settlement, she remains the only person who "won" the events of the second game by refusing to play the game of revenge.
To understand Dina is to understand that the true "Last of Us" aren't the ones who keep fighting—they're the ones who find something worth living for.
Next Steps for Fans:
- Replay the "Finding Strings" flashback to see the early flirtation between Ellie and Dina; it contextually changes their dynamic in the Seattle chapters.
- Watch the "Grounded II" documentary to see how Shannon Woodward's performance influenced the writers to give Dina a more prominent role in the finale.
- Compare Dina's approach to grief with Abby's; both lost their families, but their methods of recovery are polar opposites.