Maria Miller (HBO series)

Maria Miller is a supporting character in the first and second seasons of HBO's The Last of Us. She is a in post-apocalyptic that has been ravaged by the and the wife of . She is one of the leaders of a in , .
== Biography ==
=== Background and early life ===
Prior to the , Maria worked as an assistant district attorney in Omaha, Nebraska. On April 3rd, 2000, she became a mother after giving birth to her son named Kevin and took up haircutting as a hobby. Just three days after Outbreak Day, on September 29th, 2003, Kevin passed away due to unknown circumstances. 
In 2016, Maria and a handful of other people founded a community at , . She was elected to the serve on the community's council. She would later take in whom she would go on to marry and expect a child with. Tommy revealed to her his history with the and how he had committed awful crimes to survive the apocalypse with his brother, . Maria forgave him for his past actions, going on to marry Tommy and expect a child with him by 2023. Tommy also told Maria about Joel's deceased daughter, , leading her to add the girl's name and date of death to a memorial in the pair's house.HBO's The Last of Us episode 6: "Kin"
=== Events of HBO's The Last of Us ===
Maria was leading a patrol near the dam powering Jackson when they spotted two survivors, a man and a girl, wandering around. They immediately confronted them at gunpoint, with Maria watching as one of her lieutenants gave instructions to the two to make sure they were not . Maria sensed something familiar about the man, and when she heard him say he was looking for his brother she immediately asked for his name, which he revealed was "". Realizing he was Tommy's brother, she and the patrol escorted Joel and the girl, , back to Jackson, where the two brothers reunited. Maria and Tommy brought them to the mess hall and watched as they ate, with Maria suspiciously eyeing Joel due to her knowledge of his and Tommy's past. When Joel tried to shoo her away, Tommy revealed he and Maria were married.
Maria and Tommy then led Joel and Ellie on a tour of Jackson. When they arrived at the stables, Maria suggested putting the two in one of the empty houses. Sensing the tension from Joel, she offered to take Ellie there herself while Joel and Tommy spoke alone. While Ellie showered, Maria left some fresh clothes for her, as well as a menstrual cup with instructions on how to use it, before heading out to get Ellie a winter coat. 
She returned to her own house to find Ellie waiting for her, and insisted on giving her a haircut. While she trimmed Ellie's hair, she explained haircutting was just a hobby rather than her prior career, which she took up due to being a parent. When Ellie offered condolences for Maria's children due to seeing the names "Kevin" and "Sarah" on the memorial slate above the fireplace, Maria revealed that only Kevin was her child, and that Sarah was Joel's daughter. She quickly realized Ellie did not know Joel had a daughter, though Ellie brushed it off as she decided it explained things about him. She tried to warn Ellie that Joel had a past, but Ellie revealed she already knew and pushed back at Maria's attempts to condemn Joel for his actions. Impressed by Ellie's fortitude, Maria advised that she be careful who she trusts, as the people she trusts are the only ones who could betray her. She then invited Ellie to attend the town's movie night.
While watching the movie, Tommy approached her and another man to ask where Joel was; they told him he had gone to a workshop to spend time alone. Tommy left to go to see him. When Maria saw Tommy return, she sensed something was bothering him but she did not inquire what it was.
== Appearance ==
Maria was a short, middle-aged African-American woman with long black hair. She wore grey buttoned shirts, blue jeans and boots. When out on patrol, she also wore a Stetson and blue jacket along with gloves and a bandana to function as a mask to prevent survivors recognising her appearance. She also carried a side arm in a holster on her person, though only when out patrolling.
== Personality ==
Maria was a compassionate woman who was driven by a need to restore society to how it was before the Cordyceps outbreak. She consequently formed a community in Jackson, whose members respected and admired her, leading them to democratically elect her as one of their leaders on the council. In Maria's own words, she was driven to ensure the community functioned as a tribal form of communism, ensuring everyone worked equally in the town, that all faiths were respected and that all supplies were shared.
Maria's compassion drove her to forgive others and provide them a fresh start in the town if they proved they earned it, including Tommy. She instinctively cared for children, arranging movie nights for them to watch in the mess hall and took care of Ellie when spending time alone with her in her house. Tommy would even reflect that Maria and her group were "good people", reflecting how their community was much more selfless than many others that had formed in the post-apocalyptic America.
However, Maria was also cautious and wary of strangers. This led her to permit her patrolmen to ambush and kill any wandering survivors who proved hostile or were infected. This caution even stretched to Tommy's brother Joel, the woman trying to persuade Ellie to question her loyalty to the man, leading Joel to speculate that Maria did not like "the wrong sort of people". Indeed, Maria would not let residents carry weapons around the town and even established a jail in the former bank to deter residents from violence.
== Relationships ==
=== Tommy Miller ===
Maria was married to and is the mother to his unborn child. Maria loved Tommy dearly, integrating him into the Jackson community and living with him, sharing a house together. 
Maria subsequently had Tommy's trust, the man confiding in her about his time with the Fireflies and the terrible things he did to survive the apocalypse with his brother Joel. Maria understood his actions and forgave him for them, justifying for him that he only committed those acts because Joel had manipulated him into believing it was the only way to survive. Tommy, in turn, reflected this dedication back to her through honoring her wishes for him to cease radio contact with Joel.
== Behind the scenes ==
* Maria is portrayed by American actress .
== Gallery ==
=== Official stills ===
S1 E6 Maria 3.jpg|Maria on patrol near the Yellowstone River.
S1E6 Joel Tommy Maria Ellie 4.jpg|Joel and Ellie eat as Tommy and Maria watch on.
S1 E6 Maria 2.jpg|Maria studies Joel.
S1E6 Joel Tommy Maria Ellie 2.jpg|Tommy and Maria take Joel and Ellie on a tour around Jackson.
S1 E6 Maria 4.jpg|Maria cutting Ellie's hair.
S1 E6 Maria 1.jpg|Maria listens to Ellie.
== References ==
Category:HBO's The Last of Us characters