Euphoria Creator Praises Sydney Sweeney Amid Season 3 Scenes Backlash

Euphoria boss Sam Levinson has been singing Sydney Sweeney’s praises as her scenes in the show’s ongoing third season continue to stir up controversy.

When the latest iteration of Euphoria debuted last month, Sydney’s character Cassie was reintroduced at a new stage of her life, having turned to OnlyFans to pay for her wedding to Jacob Elordi’s Nate.

With their big day now behind them, Cassie had initially planned to leave OnlyFans behind, but with her new husband’s debts to pay off, the latest instalment saw her returning to the adult site with even more extreme photo-shoots.

Meanwhile, another scene in the episode saw her snorting cocaine off a friend’s crotch, before rubbing the same drug on herself.

Sydney’s character’s story arc has raised eyebrows throughout season three, but the show’s creator has continued to heap praise on the Emmy-nominated actor’s performance.

During a Q&A for The Hollywood Reporter’s Directors In Focus event, Sam enthused: “What’s interesting is if you push it a little bit, she becomes brilliant. You just do a few more takes, and she can reach these levels that are very honest emotionally, but also deeply funny.

“She’s able to anchor the scene with this kind of madness and chaos going on around her.”

He was similarly effusive about the show’s lead, Zendaya, claiming: “What’s so spectacular about Zendaya as an actor is the physicality that she has, and I think it goes back to her Disney training, that she’s able to move with such humour and tell a story.”

Sydney has repeatedly called out the “double standard” she sees around the way male and female actors who have appeared nude on screen are treated, claiming back in 2022: “When a guy has a sex scene or shows his body, he still wins awards and gets praise. But the moment a girl does it, it’s completely different.”

More recently, Sam Levinson shared his intention with the portrayal of OnlyFans work in his show before season three started airing.

Euphoria continues on Sky and Now in the UK on Mondays.