wanting to be a princess. It was unattainable, it was just a far-stretched dream, ‘She’ll come out of it one day.’ And when I was young, I was like 10 years old, this really small indie came to town, and I found out about it, and I wanted to audition really bad, but my parents were like, ‘What? What’s going on?’ So I put together a five-year business plan presentation of what could happen if they let me audition for this movie. And in it had like, ‘If I audition and I book it, then I’ll meet people on this set that will then introduce me to an agent, and then the agent can get me auditions for commercials and short films, and then maybe I’ll have a resume. We could go down to LA for pilot season….’ when pilot season was still a thing. So my parents realised I was pretty serious about my dream.
Of all of your first shows and films, which one would you say helped put into focus the types of stories you would really want to tell going forward? It would be ‘Sharp Objects’ and ‘Handmaid’s Tale’. I filmed those in the same year. And ‘Sharp Objects’ was one of the first shows that I got cast in that wasn’t just, like, a co-star or a featured extra. And I will never forget Jean-Marc Vallée. He saw in me what I hoped that other people would see in myself, and I appreciated everything that he did for me. And then during that time, I also worked on ‘Everything Sucks’, which is with Michael Mohan, who directed ‘Immaculate’, and he’s the first director to hire me in a series regular role on a show. And so it was just such a beautiful way to start to feel more confident in the room and have characters that really meant a lot to me.
Was there anything about being on set for the first time that surprised you about the industry in a good way? How small it actually is. Like, how small this entire world is. You always are running into people you know.
So let’s talk about ‘Euphoria’, what is a misconception about having a breakout project in this industry? Oh my goodness. That’s a good question. I think that one of the biggest misconceptions is that your life changes overnight - because it doesn’t. At least for me, it didn’t. I still auditioned for ‘White Lotus’ and every project that I had after that. It opened more doors, but I still had to put in the work and the effort to continue doing what I love.
You mentioned opening doors. what is something that truly did change for the better when ‘Euphoria’ came out? The connection with the fans. It’s so amazing being able to walk into a room and have people who want to talk to you about your character or the story or what the project meant to them.
How did it feel to get nominated for an Emmy for your role in ‘Euphoria’ and playing Olivia in ‘White Lotus’? I think I’m still in denial that it happened. I was filming at the time, so I didn’t really allow myself time to process what was happening. And even when I was actually at the Emmys, I don’t think that it hit me what was happening. I always have, like, imposter syndrome when it comes to that kind of stuff. But it’s incredible. Like, both Olivia from ‘White Lotus’ and Cassie from ‘Euphoria’, they mean so much to me, and I thoroughly enjoyed playing both of those characters and the people that I got to work with on both of those sets.
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Tell us about your journey to becoming a producer? Do you remember the first time you could feel the power of your own voice on a set? When I was working with Michael Mohan. He just is so incredible, and I always felt very comfortable and safe to be able to share an idea. And whether he took it or not, it wasn’t important. He just at least gave me the space to be able to speak my mind and my thoughts and feel involved in the process.
What does being a producer mean to you, and how do you want to influence the projects you work on for the better? To me, being a producer and whenever I personally will put my name as a producer on a project means I’m a part of it from the beginning to the end. I don’t want to miss a step. I do not like the idea of just putting my name on something and taking credit where it’s not due.
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INTERVIEW SYDNEY SWEENEY
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