It is arguably the most famous line in modern gaming history that never actually happened. When fans talk about Ellie I'm gonna be a dad, they aren't quoting a specific cutscene from the 2013 masterpiece or its polarizing sequel. They are talking about a feeling. They’re talking about a meme, a misremembered fragment of dialogue, and a massive community-driven "what if" that has taken on a life of its own.
You’ve seen it on TikTok. You’ve seen it in fan edits.
The phrase has become a shorthand for the tragic, beautiful, and deeply messed-up relationship between Joel Miller and Ellie Williams. It’s a phantom limb of a quote. Even though Joel never looks at Ellie and utters those exact words in the way the internet portrays it, the sentiment is the entire engine of the franchise. It’s why people are still arguing about the ending of The Last of Us Part I over a decade later.
The Viral Origin of a Quote That Doesn't Exist
The internet is weirdly good at manifesting things into reality. If you search for the scene where Joel says, "Ellie, I'm gonna be a dad," you won't find it in the game files of the Naughty Dog title. You’ll find a mountain of fan fiction and "incorrect quotes" posts.
Basically, the phrase started circulating as a way to poke fun at Joel’s incredibly repressed fatherly instincts. In the first game, Joel spends the first half of the journey insisting that Ellie is just "cargo." He’s cold. He’s mean. He’s terrified.
Then comes the giraffe scene in Salt Lake City.
That’s the moment the dam breaks. Joel finally looks at this girl—who isn't Sarah, his biological daughter, but might as well be—and softens. The "Ellie I'm gonna be a dad" meme essentially distills Joel’s entire character arc into a single, goofy, heartbreaking sentence. It captures the moment he stops being a smuggler and starts being a father again, for better or worse.
Why This Specific Phrase Resonates
Why do we care about a fake quote? Honestly, because the alternative is too depressing.
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The actual dialogue in The Last of Us is much more subtle. Joel tells Ellie about how he and Sarah used to go to carnivals. He offers to teach her guitar once they're done with the Fireflies. He doesn't need to say "I'm gonna be a dad" because he's already acting like one by lying to her at the end of the game to "save" her.
The phrase Ellie I'm gonna be a dad represents the version of the story where things ended happily. It represents the domestic life in Jackson that we briefly saw at the start of Part II before everything went to hell. It’s a sort of collective coping mechanism for a fanbase that has been put through the emotional wringer.
The Weight of Joel’s Choice
When people use the "dad" meme, they are often referencing the massive moral weight of the hospital sequence. Joel chooses one girl over the entire human race. It’s selfish. It’s monstrous. It’s also completely human.
Most players, when they reach that final hallway in the hospital, don't feel like a hero. They feel like a parent. Naughty Dog’s Neil Druckmann has spoken at length in various "Grounded" documentaries about how the game was designed to explore the "unconditional love a parent has for their child" and the "dark side" of that love.
The meme strips away the darkness for a second. It lets us imagine a version of Joel who is just excited to be a father again, rather than a broken man who murdered a room full of doctors to keep his "daughter" from leaving him.
The Role of Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey
The discourse around Ellie I'm gonna be a dad got a massive second wind with the HBO adaptation. Pedro Pascal’s portrayal of Joel brought a more "vulnerable" energy to the character compared to Troy Baker’s more rugged, video-game-protagonist vibe.
Pascal has this "internet's daddy" persona in real life, which collided head-on with the The Last of Us fandom. Suddenly, the meme wasn't just about the game; it was about the actor.
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In the show, the dialogue is tweaked to be even more explicit about their bond. When Joel tells Ellie, "I failed you," and she responds, "You didn't fail me," it’s the closest we get to a verbal confirmation of their father-daughter status. The internet took that emotional high and turned it back into the "I'm gonna be a dad" format because, frankly, it’s easier to process trauma through jokes.
Fact-Checking the "Dad" Moments
If we’re being real experts here, we have to look at what Joel actually says that fuels this fire.
- The Ranch House Scene: This is where the tension peaks. Ellie shouts, "I'm not Sarah!" and Joel responds with the devastating, "You're right, you're not my daughter. And I sure as hell ain't your dad." This is the "anti-meme" moment. It's the low point that makes the eventual "dad" realization so powerful.
- The "Baby Girl" Line: After the horrific encounter with David in the winter chapter, Joel grabs a traumatized Ellie and calls her "baby girl." This was Sarah’s nickname. This is the moment Joel internally says the meme. He has accepted her.
- The Guitar Lesson: In the opening of Part II, Joel plays "Future Days" by Pearl Jam. The lyrics are basically a dad’s vow of protection.
People who search for Ellie I'm gonna be a dad are usually looking for that feeling of protection. They want to see the "Dad Joel" who makes bad jokes and tries to protect Ellie from the world, even if that world is already dead.
The Cultural Impact of the Meme
It’s fascinating how gaming communities create their own lore.
Think about Metal Gear Solid or Final Fantasy. Fans often latch onto phrases that sum up a character's essence. For Joel, the idea of reclaiming his fatherhood is his entire soul. Without it, he's just a guy with a beard and a shotgun.
The meme has also branched out into "Dad Joel" fan art. You’ll see drawings of Joel teaching Ellie how to drive, or Joel embarrassing Ellie in front of Dina. It’s a subculture of wholesome content that exists as a direct counter-balance to the extreme violence and misery of the actual games.
Why We Can't Let Go
The Last of Us is a story about grief. Joel’s grief for Sarah, and Ellie’s grief for her lost childhood.
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When we say Ellie I'm gonna be a dad, we’re acknowledging that Joel found a way to heal, even if that healing was built on a lie. It’s a testament to the writing of the game that a fake quote can carry as much emotional weight as the real ones.
It also highlights the generational gap in the fandom. Newer fans who came in through the HBO show or the PC remake often see Joel as a purely heroic father figure. Older fans who played the original in 2013 tend to see the nuance and the "villainy" in his actions. The meme bridges that gap. It’s a common language for everyone who was moved by the story.
Real-World Takeaways for Fans
If you're looking to dive deeper into this specific dynamic, there are a few things you should actually check out.
- Watch the "Grounded" Documentary: The making-of film for the first game shows how they built the chemistry between Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson. It explains why the father-daughter bond feels so "real" even though it's pixels.
- Listen to the Soundtrack: Gustavo Santaolalla’s score, specifically the track "All Gone," plays during the most "dad" moments of the game. It’s the sound of Joel’s heart breaking and reforming.
- Replay the Museum Scene: In The Last of Us Part II, there is a flashback to a museum. It is the definitive "Dad Joel" moment. He puts an astronaut helmet on her. He helps her "launch" into space. It’s the closest the game ever gets to the meme.
Moving Forward With the Story
We don't know if there will be a The Last of Us Part III. If there is, it will have to deal with the vacuum left by Joel.
The Ellie I'm gonna be a dad sentiment will likely haunt the next game. Ellie is now an adult, navigating her own path, but everything she does is colored by the man who decided to be her father. Whether she forgives him or not, that bond is the anchor of the series.
If you want to understand the impact of Joel’s fatherhood, don't just look at the memes. Look at how Ellie treats the people she loves in the second game. She struggles with the same "all-consuming" love that Joel had. She’s his daughter in every way that matters, including the dangerous ones.
To truly appreciate the "Dad Joel" phenomenon, go back and play the "Left Behind" DLC, then jump straight into the first game's finale. Notice the shift in Joel's eyes. You don't need a script to tell you he's decided to be a father again. He’s already made up his mind before he even reaches the operating room.
The meme might be fake, but the emotion is the most real thing in gaming.
Actionable Insights for The Last of Us Fans
- Verify Your Quotes: If you're writing fan content or making edits, remember that Joel never says the phrase "Ellie I'm gonna be a dad" verbatim. Using the actual dialogue like "I got you, baby girl" often hits much harder for a "lore-accurate" audience.
- Explore the "Museum Flashback": If you’re looking for the peak of their father-daughter relationship, focus your analysis or fan-work on the birthday gift sequence in Part II. It’s the gold standard for character development in the series.
- Analyze the Moral Ambiguity: Instead of viewing Joel as just a "dad," look at the Firefly logs in the final hospital level. They provide the necessary context that makes Joel’s decision—and his fatherhood—so controversial and interesting.
- Support the Creators: Check out the official Naughty Dog podcasts where the writers break down the specific "beats" of Joel’s transformation from a survivor to a parent. It’s a masterclass in narrative structure.