Despite all the controversy surrounding The Last of Us 2, and particularly the character Abby, someone decided to dress up as the vengeful protagonist for Halloween. This cosplayer has a special connection with both The Last of Us 2 and Abby, however, as she was the model used for the character’s face.
While the majority of fans are on Team Ellie regarding the story of The Last of Us 2, a decent number of players empathize with Abby and understand why she does what she does throughout the events of the game. One person that seems to be a fan is Jocelyn Mettler, the woman that Naughty Dog used as a model for Abby’s face. Mettler’s Halloween costume of Abby is incredibly detailed, bringing the character straight out of the game and into the real world.
The costume sees Mettler adopt Abby’s plaited hair and signature outfits, complete with boots and cargo pants. Numerous weapons from the world of The Last of Us are used as part of the outfit, and a few props are shown off in a series of photos posted on Mettler's Instagram account. A burrito is being held in one of the images, a nice nod to when players explore the stadium base of the WLF as Abby. Perhaps the best prop is the pair of weights, though, as they fit Abby’s muscled-up physique well.
With even The Last of Us 2 director Neil Druckmann calling out critics of Abby’s body, including the heavily discussed muscles of the character were a must for a cosplay. Mettler clearly realized this, as she added heavy padding inside the shirt’s arms to make the look complete. The result is a seriously impressive cosplay that completely nails the look of Abby, getting a large boost from Mettler’s face completely matching the character’s appearance in the game.
Given the immense amount of negativity surrounding the character, such as death threats being sent to Abby’s voice actor Laura Bailey, it is nice to see someone involved with Abby sharing how much they love her. While the complicated character is certainly not going to be appreciated by everyone given what she did in the game’s story, Abby’s complex nature has won her more and more fans as time has gone on. Love Abby or hate her, though, it is hard not to appreciate this special Halloween costume from Jocelyn Mettler.
With an HBO show on the way for The Last of Us, and Troy Baker already requesting a special role, it will be interesting if Mettler gets a cameo as well. Regardless, no matter who plays her, a whole new controversy is likely to begin whenever Abby makes her debut in the series.
The Last of Us 2 is available now on PS4.
Source: Jocelyn Mettler
