Sydney Sweeney Talks Avoiding Being Pigeonholed After 'Euphoria' Role

Sydney Sweeney is working hard to avoid getting trapped into playing the same role she did in "Euphoria."

Since 2019, the talented actress has played the role of Cassie Howard, a misguided and sensitive ex-figure skater who is often perceived as promiscuous as she grapples with toxic relationships.

This portrayal has often resulted in her featuring in various intimate scenes, sometimes partially naked. Despite playing the character to perfection, Sweeney has intentionally avoided getting pigeonholed into it. 

Even though it has become normal for numerous skilled actors to find themselves repeatedly portraying a particular character, Sweeney is not letting the same fate befall her. Addressing the peculiar situation of her peers getting pigeonholed, the "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood" actress stated during a Variety interview, "It's kind of sad to watch."

Luckily for her, her appearance in the comedy-drama series "The White Lotus" and the 2023 drama film "Reality" have shown people that she is far from being Cassie. To that end, she shared:

"I don't think I'll be able to change it, but I'm glad that people are like, 'Wow, she can act.' [For every project since Euphoria], I have had to prove people wrong."

During the same conversation, Sweeney touched on her feelings about constantly being in the news for random speculations about her life. Besides dealing with assumptions about her family's political situation, the "Madame Web" star has also been accused of having an affair with her "Anyone But You" male co-star, Glen Powell. 

"Sometimes I feel beat up by it. It's hard to sit back and watch, and not be able to stand up for yourself," she said of the allegations. Going further to explain the situation with Powell, which started after they presented the film at CinemaCon in Las Vegas earlier this year, she declared:

"It's a rom-com. That's what people want! Glen and I don't really care. We have so much fun together, and we respect each other so much; he's such a hard worker, and I'm a hard worker. We talk all the time like, 'That's really funny.'"

As we mentioned above, the 25-year-old blonde's "Euphoria" role sometimes meant she had to appear in semi-nude scenes. While that seemed to work for her and her supporters, her father, Steven Sweeney, told a different tale.

The Blast noted that Sydney had revealed in a June episode of "Sunday Today with Willie Geist" that Steven was uncomfortable watching her racy scenes in the HBO drama series. Detailing what transpired during one of those scenes, the "Big Time Adolescence" performer shared:

"My dad and my grandpa turned it off and walked out. But my grandma, my grandma — she's a big supporter of mine. She's a big fan of mine."

As it turned out, the actress' father initially believed the show was similar to others he had seen and was taken by surprise upon discovering his daughter's involvement in multiple nude scenes. Sydney, on the other hand, shouldered the blame for his reaction, confessing that she hadn't adequately "prepared" him beforehand. 

She also acknowledged their lack of conversations about work, which could have contributed to the oversight on her part. "When I talk to my dad, it's usually not about work. We talk like father-daughter conversations," the Dorian Television Awards nominee admitted further.

While it is unclear if her father's experience with her racy scenes influenced the decision, Sydney had previously revealed ther own discomfort with Cassie's frequent nude scenes. At the time, she claimed that she had taken her concerns to the show's creator, Sam Levinson, requesting that he remove racy contents that are unnecessary.

"There are moments where [my character] Cassie was supposed to be shirtless, and I would tell Sam, 'I don't really think that's necessary here.'" After pointing out that her request was honored by Levinson, the Hollywood Television Critics Association nominee divulged:

"I've never felt like Sam has pushed it on me or was trying to get a nude scene into an HBO show. When I didn't want to do it, he didn't make me."