Actor Annie Wersching (Tess in The Last of Us game) dies at 45

It’s a sad moment for fans of Naughty Dog’s The Last of Us video game. Annie Wersching, who portrayed Tess in the iconic 2013 game, has passed away after a two-year battle with cancer. She was 45.

Wersching is perhaps best known for her roles as Renee Walker on 24 and Tess in The Last of Us, but she has appeared in tons of other places over the years. Her on-screen acting debut was in a 2002 episode of Star Trek: Enterprise. She also appeared in Frasier, Supernatural, Charmed, Timeless, The Vampire Diaries, Extant, Runaways and The Rookie, just to name a few.

“Just found out my dear friend, Annie Wersching, passed away,” The Last of Us creator Neil Druckmann shared to Twitter over the weekend. “We just lost a beautiful artist and human being. My heart is shattered. Thoughts are with her loved ones.”

The Last of Us game actor Annie Wersching dies at 45

Wersching was diagnosed with cancer in 2020. Despite this, she continued acting; she recently appeared as the Borg Queen in season 2 of Star Trek: Picard.

Wersching’s death was first confirmed by a GoFundMe that was shared to support her family during this difficult time. Here’s part of the official statement from the campaign:

"Annie lived for her family. She loved her work and cherished her friends, but Steve and the boys were her absolute everything. It’s so Steve can have time to grieve without the pressure of needing to work. So he can be daddy to Freddie (12), Ozzie (9) and Archie (4) as they navigate the future without their mom, without sweet Annie."

Wersching is survived by her husband and three sons, and leaves a tremendous body of work for the rest of us to remember her by.

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