‘Euphoria’ Star Shuts Down Criticism Over Her Looks in Tearful Video

Actress Sydney Sweeney made an emotional response to recent comments about her appearance on Instagram Live this week, and the footage from the stream is going viral. Sweeney is best-known for playing high school student Cassie Howard on HBO’s Euphoria, and she recently became a trending topic due to conversations about her appearance. She addressed these hurtful words directly.

“Apparently I am trending on Twitter right now for being ugly,” Sweeney said, apparently reclining on some cushions somewhere with other people not far away. “I think it’s really important for people to see how words actually affect people. I know everyone says, ‘You can’t read things,’ and ‘You shouldn’t read things,’ but like, I’m a f—ing person. I’m just sitting here with my dog Tink, watching HGTV, wearing my Snuggie. People need to be nicer on social media because it’s really f—ed up.” According to a report by PEOPLE, some of the most prominent tweets poking fun at Sweeney have now been removed from Twitter for violating the platform’s guidelines about harassment.

Sweeney’s raw, unfiltered broadcast is now making the rounds in re-posts on social media, and sparking new conversations about how celebrities should be treated online. For many, it was unthinkable that enough people mocked Sweeney’s appearance for her to hear about it since they believed she was so classically beautiful.

“Not someone calling Sydney Sweeney ugly… you must be blind,” one person tweeted. Another wrote: “From personality to talent to beauty she’s truly wonderful and doesn’t deserve any slander whatsoever.”

Sweeney is back with the rest of the cast filming Euphoria Season 2 now. The drama series is about a group of high school students muddling their way through the discovery of and experimentation with sex, drugs, love and their own identities. The show has been both praised and condemned for its graphic depictions and traumatic moments.

In spite of the controversies, however, the first season earned Zendaya an Emmy for her portrayal of the main character, Rue Bennett. The series was one of many to be impacted by the coronavirus pandemic, which postponed filming on the second season in delays that are still being felt today. However, excitement for new episodes has slowly been building as the cast continues to tease work on the series on social media.

Euphoria Season 1 is streaming now on HBO Max. So far, there is no release date for Season 2.