Sydney Sweeney has sparked concerns that she may derail her Hollywood career if she continues to feature in racy roles.
Since her breakout role on “Euphoria,” the actress has scored several top screen jobs that involved her playing suggestive roles, but experts say she runs the risk of being “typecast” as having only nudity to offer.
Sydney Sweeney has previously defended herself, saying she feels like there’s “a stigma against actresses who get naked on screen.”
Experts Warn Sydney Sweeney Risks Derailing Her Career
Sydney Sweeney has been dragged into several online controversies over her edgy and nude scenes in the ongoing “Euphoria” season 3, as well as other films.
More recently, she garnered fan ire after she posed like a baby in the Sam Levinson-led film, as well as took part in several absurd requests from fans since she became an adult creator in the series.
Now, experts have raised an alarm on how she risks derailing her career with the frequent nude and provocative castings, warning that she could be “typecast” with sexualized characters becoming “her entire brand proposition.”
“Euphoria clearly helped establish Sydney Sweeney as a fearless performer, physically and emotionally, and that’s part of why she broke through,” crisis and reputation management expert Dave Quast told Fox News Digital.
“The risk is that when the public conversation focuses more on the sexualised aspects of the role than on the performance, the same work that made her seem daring can start to narrow the brand,” he continued.
The Expert Claims There’s A Problem If Sexuality Becomes ‘Dominant’ In Her Screen Jobs
Elsewhere in his assessment of the situation, Quast explained that although displaying sexuality on screen “is not inherently unserious,” the problem arises when “it becomes the dominant shorthand for the actor.”
“For Sweeney, the challenge is not that she has played sexualised roles. The challenge is making sure those roles continue to read as character choices, not as the entire brand proposition,” he added.
Last year, the 28-year-old actress starred in several racy scenes with co-star Brandon Sklenar in “The Housemaid.”
Things quickly intensified following the release of the third and final season of “Euphoria,” where her character Cassie joined OnlyFans to make money and support her marriage to Jacob Elordi’s Nate.
Sam Levinson Defended Sydney Sweeney’s Character’s Twist
Several fans have dragged her and show creator Sam Levinson, with many even suggesting that the show be canceled.
In the latest season, they’ve claimed many of her racy scenes were “unnecessary,” while also ripping Levinson for his “unnecessary use” of Nazi symbols.
During an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Levinson addressed the uproar over the character in this season, explaining that her provocative outfits, like the dog and baby costumes, were meant to add humor to the scenes of Cassie making OnlyFans content, with said content being filmed by her housekeeper.
“[Cassie] has got her dog house and her little dog ears and the nose, and that has its own humor, but what makes the scene is the fact that her housekeeper is the one filming it,” Levinson said. “What we wanted to always find is the other layer of absurdity that we’re able to tie into it so that we’re not too inside of her fantasy or illusion… the gag is to jump out, to break the wall.”
The Actress Said She Never Felt ‘Pushed’ To Do Raunchy Scenes In ‘Euphoria’
Sweeney has previously spoken out against the backlash that has trailed her racy portrayal on screen, noting that “Euphoria” creator never forced her to do anything she didn’t want to.
In an interview with The Independent, she said that people willfully antagonize actresses who go naked rather than look at the talent.
“I’ve never felt like Favour Adegoke Sam [Levinson] has pushed it on me or was trying to get a nude scene into an HBO show,” she said. “When I didn’t want to do it, he didn’t make me.”
“There are moments where Cassie was supposed to be shirtless, and I would tell Sam, ‘I don’t really think that’s necessary here,’” she added. “He was like, ‘OK, we don’t need it.’”
Sydney Sweeney Thinks There’s A ‘Stigma Against Women Going Nude On Screen
Sweeney also explained that while she’s willing to appear nude, she doesn’t necessarily believe it should overshadow her talent.
“This is something that has bothered me for a while,” she said. “I’m very proud of my work in Euphoria. I thought it was a great performance. But no one talks about it because I got naked. I do ‘The White Lotus,’ and all of a sudden, critics are paying attention.”
Sweeney continued, “People are loving me. They’re going, ‘Oh my God, what’s she doing next?’ I was like, ‘Did you not see that in ‘Euphoria?’ Did you not see that in ‘The Handmaid’s Tale?’”
She then added that she thinks there’s “a stigma against actresses who get naked on screen,” 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.”
