Sydney Sweeney says she would not make Cassie Howard’s choices in Euphoria, but she still had to play them without judging the character from the outside.
The actress discussed Cassie’s controversial Season 3 OnlyFans storyline in a new Vanity Fair interview, after HBO’s drama wrapped a season that moved its characters five years beyond high school.
Cassie’s adult storyline became one of the season’s biggest talking points. People reported that the character marries Nate Jacobs, played by Jacob Elordi, and gains notoriety as an OnlyFans model.
Sweeney’s answer centered on Cassie’s long-running need for attention and approval. She said she does not personally agree with Cassie’s decisions, but her job was to play Cassie’s life honestly.
Sweeney Said Cassie Still Needs Validation
People reported that Sweeney traced Cassie’s Season 3 choices back to the same emotional pattern viewers have seen since the character first appeared in 2019. Sweeney said Cassie has always needed to feel loved and validated by other people because she does not know how to love herself without that approval.
That is how Sweeney understood Cassie’s reaction to online attention in Season 3. She told Vanity Fair that Cassie was drawn to the feeling that many people loved her, knew who she was, and made her world feel larger.
Sweeney also separated herself from the role. “Would I personally make these choices? No, of course not,” she said, according to People. “But I’m an actor and that’s my job, and this is Cassie’s life.”
Sam Levinson and Sweeney Talked Through the Scenes
Sweeney said creator Sam Levinson sent her the scripts with Cassie’s OnlyFans scenes included, then called her to talk through the material. She told Vanity Fair that she approached the scenes as part of playing Cassie “in the most vulnerable and insane way possible.”
Levinson also discussed the storyline in a New York Times interview quoted by People. He said he originally considered shooting the OnlyFans material without nudity or finding ways to avoid certain images, but Sweeney challenged that idea because Cassie was being written as an OnlyFans model.
People reported that Levinson called Sweeney a “totally fearless actor” and praised the trust between them on set. The article also noted that Cassie’s Season 3 storyline caused controversy with some viewers and critics.
Season 3 Moved Euphoria Into Adulthood
People reported that Euphoria Season 3 premiered on April 12 and wrapped on May 31, with all episodes streaming on HBO Max. The season used a five-year time jump to move Cassie, Rue, Nate, Maddy, Lexi, and the rest of the characters beyond East Highland High.
Sweeney also pushed back on rumors that cast schedules caused the long delay between Seasons 2 and 3. She said the cast was in first position with HBO, meaning the show had priority once filming was ready, and said the actors’ outside projects were not holding up the production.
The Vanity Fair interview also covered a scene that did not make the final season. Sweeney said she trained for a pole-dancing sequence that was later cut, and Entertainment Weekly reported that she still hopes the deleted scene is eventually released.
Sweeney Called Saying Goodbye to Cassie Bittersweet
Sweeney told Vanity Fair that every season of Euphoria has been approached as if it could be the last. People reported that she described saying goodbye to Cassie as bittersweet because the role has challenged and stretched her as an actor.
Vanity Fair reported that Cassie ends the Season 3 finale still tied to the OnlyFans world, even after the dismantling of her own account. The outlet also noted that Cassie and Maddy turn their house into a space for OnlyFans models, while Cassie’s final moments include a conversation with Lexi about Rue’s death.