{"id":247457,"date":"2026-06-20T19:41:27","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T19:41:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/20\/sam-levinson-addresses-backlash-over-sydney-sweeneys-euphoria-season-3-onlyfans-character-arc\/"},"modified":"2026-06-20T19:41:27","modified_gmt":"2026-06-20T19:41:27","slug":"sam-levinson-addresses-backlash-over-sydney-sweeneys-euphoria-season-3-onlyfans-character-arc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/20\/sam-levinson-addresses-backlash-over-sydney-sweeneys-euphoria-season-3-onlyfans-character-arc\/","title":{"rendered":"Sam Levinson Addresses Backlash Over Sydney Sweeney\u2019s \u2018Euphoria\u2019 Season 3 OnlyFans Character Arc"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Euphoria<\/em> <\/a>creator Sam Levinson<\/strong><\/a> is addressing the intense online backlash surrounding Sydney Sweeney\u2019<\/strong><\/a>s character, Cassie Howard, and her season 3 OnlyFans character arc<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you look at OnlyFans, it is making as much money as Hollywood. I mean, essentially it\u2019s on par,\u201d Levinson, 41, said on the Friday, June 19, episode of Real Time With Bill Maher<\/a><\/em> about the storyline and the swift condemnation it received from fans of the hit HBO Max series and real-life sex workers<\/a> alike.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not a niche business, it is a massive enterprise,\u201d he continued. \u201cAnd so if you\u2019re young, you\u2019re going \u2026 \u2018I don\u2019t want to go work in a nine to five at this place or that thing. Well, maybe I can just start taking photos of myself?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

In the third and final season of Euphoria<\/em><\/a>, Sweeney\u2019s Cassie films herself in a slew of naked or near-naked scenes in which she cosplays various sexual fantasies for her online clients and admirers, including adult baby play, foot fetishes, dominatrix work and more. For many of the scenes, Sweeney was topless or near-naked, sparking online backlash about how both her and her character were portrayed on screen.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe has a need to be validated by other people,\u201d Sweeney, 38, told Vanity Fair<\/em> in a June interview. \u201cShe doesn\u2019t know how to love herself unless someone else loves her. So I understand how Sam got her to where she was in season 3. I think she was more excited by the idea of these people loving her and knowing who she is and feeling like her world isn\u2019t small.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\n Sydney Sweeney and Sam Levinson<\/span> Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

She continued at the time, \u201cHe actually, as we were finishing up season 2, started hinting at different ideas that he was putting together for season 3. And it was very similar to season 1 and season 2, he would call me, usually a few weeks after we wrapped, and he pitched me the entire idea. So I knew years before we started filming season 2 that I would be married to Nate, we\u2019d be living in a suburban neighborhood and Cassie would be crazier than ever.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Friday, Levinson said that as a creator he was interested in exploring the \u201clong-term consequences\u201d of online sex work<\/a>, like OnlyFans.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happens when you know, as a young person, you\u2019re on Instagram \u2026 and you\u2019re told that you\u2019re the product, you\u2019re the brand, and now you\u2019re 18 years old, and you\u2019re going, well, \u2018How do I make money?\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cAnd I just thought chasing that desire, that kind of fast cash, was an interesting thing to kind of explore.\u201d<\/p>\n

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