Sydney Sweeney on the impact that nude scenes in Euphoria had on her and her family

"It’s completely disgusting and unfair."

Sydney Sweeney
(Image credit: Taylor Hill / Getty)

Since Euphoria landed on our television screens in 2019, it has catapulted the cast into the limelight. While Zendaya already had a stellar acting career behind her with credits including Spider-Man and The Greatest Showman, her performance in the series earned her her first ever Emmy award, while the likes of Jacob Elordi, Alexa Demi and Hunter Schafer became instant red carpet fixtures. 

One of the show's biggest stars, Sydney Sweeney, quickly became a fan favourite for her excellent portrayal of teen Cassie Howard, and she has since gone on to star in The White Lotus

However, the 25 year old actor has been candid about how her nude scenes in Euphoria have impacted her over the years, and how women face a different reaction to onscreen sex scenes than their male counterparts. 

Last year, she told The Independent that she finds it frustrating that nudity overshadowed her work on the show, saying: "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... [there's] stigma against actresses who get naked on screen."

Now, Sydney has opened up about how being sexualised online has impacted not only her, but her family too. 

Talking to The Sun about her character Cassie's experience with revenge porn and slut-shaming, she said: "I had boobs before other girls and I felt ostracised for it."

She also explained that her family had been targeted online by those sharing nude images of her while playing Cassie. 

She added: "It got to the point where they were tagging my family. My cousins don’t need that. It’s completely disgusting and unfair. You have a character that goes through the scrutiny of being a sexualised person at school and then an audience that does the same thing."

However, Sydney is determined not to let that stop her doing what she loves. 

She continued: "I think it’s ridiculous. I’m an artist, I play characters. It makes me want to play characters that piss people off more."

Jadie Troy-Pryde
News Editor

Jadie Troy-Pryde is News Editor, covering celebrity and entertainment, royal, lifestyle and viral news. Before joining the team in 2018 as the Lifestyle and Social Media Editor, she worked at a number of women’s fashion and lifestyle titles including Grazia, Women’s Health and Stylist, and now heads the Marie Claire UK news desk.