Barbie Ferreira recently shut down reports that she and Euphoria creator Sam Levinson were in conflict while filming the hit HBO series’ second season.
In an interview with Insider, the 25-year-old model-turned-actress called much of a report about tension on Euphoria ‘untrue.’
She was reported to have walked off set during a moment of tension with Levinson over storylines that he wrote for her character Kat Hernandez, according to The Daily Beast.
Speaking up: Barbie Ferreira, 25, said much of reports that she stormed off the set of Euphoria and feuded with creator Sam Levinson was ‘untrue’ in a recent interview with Insider; seen in September in NYC
‘I’ve seen so many different things and a lot of it is untrue and some of it’s kind of like mundane little things,’ Ferreira said.
‘But I really think that the fans are really passionate and I do appreciate that because Euphoria has really impacted so many people,’ she continued. ‘Sometimes, things take on a life of their own, and they’re not rooted in the truth, but it’s OK because I know it’s just out of passion and out of curiosity and all that good stuff. And I signed up for it. So, I’ll take it. I’ll take the good and the bad.’
The Unpregnant star admitted that she was intrigued by all the interesting in the behind-the-scenes drama on Euphoria.
‘What’s interesting about this season is there are so many more eyes on it that even the news cycle has been so interesting to see,’ she added.
‘I’ve seen so many different things and a lot of it is untrue and some of it’s kind of like mundane little things,’ Ferreira said, adding, ‘Sometimes, things take on a life of their own, and they’re not rooted in the truth’; still from Euphoria
Butting heads: The Daily Beast reported that Ferriera was in conflict with Levinson (pictured) over her character Kat Hernandez’s diminished storyline in season two; seen with Zendaya in January
Fans of Barbie’s character Kat were disappointed after she had a smaller presence in season two.
Her main storyline revolved around her romance with Ethan Daley (Austin Abrams), whose sweet behavior started to turn her off as she found herself feeling restless and attracted to more stereotypically masculine men.
She also briefly dealt with feelings of inadequacy over her body brought on by overzealous body positivity activists, but her screen time appeared to be significantly decreased from the first season.
In her interview with Insider, Ferreira said she hoped to see more of that ‘internal fantasy life’ brought to reality with season three.
‘I hope to see her relationship with herself, the internet, with her friends,’ she shared. ‘I hope to see everything beautifully devolve as it always does on Euphoria. I’m excited to read it. I don’t think it’s written yet, so I’ll be waiting.’
Although she was hoping for more, she seemed to agree with Levinson’s choice to sour Kat’s relationship with Ethan, with the actress adding that she knew it ‘was gonna go downhill’ because her character ‘is a restless teenager.’
In her interview with Insider, Ferreira said she hoped to see more of Kat’s ‘internal fantasy life’ brought to reality with season three; seen on Euphoria with Alex Demie
The latest Euphoria season saw Levinson — who wrote all of the season one episodes and directed the majority of them — assume even greater creative control by becoming the high school–set show’s sole director.
Last week, The Daily Beast quoted insiders on Euphoria who described the set as a ‘toxic workplace.’
One unnamed background extra claimed that they were deprived of bathroom breaks and snacks while working long hours.
‘I understand that I’m doing background work. I’m not the most important person there, I know where I am on the totem pole,’ they began.
‘But it got to a point where I was like, I’m still a person, I’m still human. Please let me go to the restroom, don’t tell me I can’t go for 30 minutes or tell me I can’t get a snack when you’re not going to feed me and it’s 4 a.m. It just very much felt like we didn’t exist as people.’
Others claimed that Levinson didn’t use a shot list, which is a plan for the various camera placements to be used that day of shooting.
Without a list planned out, it can add significant time to shooting to devise new shots on the spot.
Issues: A Daily Beast exposé claimed that background actors were prohibited from eating or using the bathroom for long periods, and a SAG-AFTRA rep reportedly had to visit set after several complaints were received; still from Euphoria
In an interview with The Cut, series lead Zendaya previously revealed that Levinson completely rewrote the scripts for the series, sometimes amid filming.
‘The majority of the originally planned season was scrapped,’ she said last month. ‘There are very few things that remain in the version that you are now seeing.’
In a statement to Variety, HBO defended production on Euphoria: ‘The well-being of cast and crew on our productions is always a top priority.
‘The production was in full compliance with all safety guidelines and guild protocols. It’s not uncommon for drama series to have complex shoots, and COVID protocols add an additional layer.
‘We maintain an open line of communication with all the guilds, including SAG-AFTRA. There were never any formal inquiries raised.’
However, the Daily Beast report claimed that so many complaints were leveled against the production that a SAG-AFTRA union representative had to show up on set, though the union declined to share how many complaints it had received or how long the rep stayed on set.
