Yes, that is Johnson singing that song at the end of episode 2.

Ashley Johnson as Anna on ‘The Last of Us’ season 1; Bella Ramsey as Ellie on season 2.After Abby (Kaitlyn Dever) kills Joel (Pedro Pascal) in front of an injured Ellie (Bella Ramsey), Jesse (Young Mazin) and Dina (Isabela Merced) help bring his dead body back to town for a proper burial. A song begins to play as their horse pulls Joel’s corpse across the packed snow and their Jackson town tallies the dead from a devastating infected attack.

A woman’s voice is heard singing a haunting rendition of Shawn James’ 2012 folk tune “Through the Valley.” It’s significant for multiple reasons. Ashley Johnson, the actor who originated Ellie in the video games and played Ellie’s mom in The Last of Us season 1, recorded this piece for the 2016 teaser that first announced The Last of Us Part II, the game on which season 2 of the series is now based. And it’s Ashley Johnson again who performs this song as the tag to Sunday’s big episode.

Craig Mazin, a showrunner on The Last of Us, confirms the recording here is a blend of Johnson’s original performance for that game teaser and “a slightly updated version” she more recently recorded in the studio.

“I always loved the song,” he says during an interview for Entertainment Weekly‘s The Last of Us cover story. “I remember that release trailer and what it did to my brain and my heart. We also not only have a connection to Ashley because she created Ellie in the game, but [because] she plays Ellie’s mom. It is an interesting thing in a moment like this, when your only parent is taken from you [and] the parent you’ve never met, the one you don’t even know about, is there watching.”

Bella Ramsey’s Ellie, Tati Gabrielle’s Nora on ‘The Last of Us’ season 2.

Johnson first played Ellie in 2013’s The Last of Us, which released on the PlayStation 3 at the time from gaming studio Naughty Dog. She returned to the role for 2014’s Left Behind DLC game, and then again for 2020’s The Last of Us Part II. Mazin and Neil Druckmann, the other series showrunner and a co-creator of the games, asked Johnson to then play Anna Williams, Ellie’s mother, in a flashback sequence that opened the season 1 finale of the HBO hit.

“It’s wild,” Johnson told EW at the time. “It’s surreal and bizarre. To be able to give birth to the character and to also be the first character to fight to keep Ellie alive…Yeah, the layers of it are not lost on me.”

Season 1 also included various guest roles for video game actors Troy Baker (Joel), Merle Dandridge (Marlene), Jeffrey Pierce (Tommy), and Laura Bailey (Abby). So far, the season 2 premiere featured a brief cameo from Gustavo Santaolalla, the composer behind The Last of Us soundtrack.

Ashley Johnson’s Voice Cameo in The Last of Us Season 2 Holds Hidden Meaning, Craig Mazin Reveals

Fans of The Last of Us were in for an emotional surprise during Season 2, Episode 2, as Ashley Johnson, the original voice actress behind Ellie in the video game franchise, made a voice cameo that added an unexpected layer of nostalgia and depth to the show. Johnson’s return isn’t just a treat for longtime fans—it also ties directly into the episode’s haunting use of a James song, which co-creator Craig Mazin explains carries a powerful message about false hope and inner conflict.

The Meaning Behind the Song

The James track used in the episode plays over a montage filled with bleak visuals, and Mazin reveals that the lyrics were carefully chosen to contrast with the harsh realities of the world portrayed in The Last of Us. “I can make an argument that for every single line of that song, as it is contrasted against what you’re seeing, it’s not true,” Mazin said. “Almost every single thing is this desire to be true, but none of it’s true.”

The song opens with lines that speak of courage and control: “I walk through the valley of the shadow of death / And I fear no evil because I’m blind to it all / And my mind and my gun they comfort me / Because I know I’ll kill my enemies when they come.”

But as Mazin points out: “Your gun’s not going to save you. You won’t kill all your enemies when they come, and you will fear what’s around you.” These words serve as a brutal reminder of how fragile even the strongest characters can be in the face of the show’s relentless violence and loss.

A Song of Broken Faith

The track continues: “Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life / And I will dwell on this earth forevermore / Said, I walk beside the still waters and they restore my soul / But I can’t walk on the path of the right because I’m wrong.”

Mazin interprets the song as a “hopeless prayer dashed to pieces”—a fitting reflection of the characters’ struggle to hold onto meaning in a collapsing world.

Yet, there’s a twist of ambiguity in the closing line: “But I know when I die my soul is damned.”

To which Mazin gently challenges: “Well, maybe that’s not true either.”

This subtle line hints at one of the series’ core themes—hope, even in the face of overwhelming despair.

A Nod to the Past, and a Step Forward

Ashley Johnson’s cameo, paired with such a symbolic song, reminds fans of how The Last of Us continues to honor its roots while pushing the story into new emotional territory. Her presence bridges the gap between game and show, while the music underscores the psychological weight each character carries.

New episodes of The Last of Us Season 2 air Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and Max. Stay tuned for more surprises, emotional payoffs, and deeper explorations into what it truly means to survive.

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