Euphoria Season 3 has just premiered on HBO, with one episode released, followed by weekly drops for the rest of the eight-episode season. Unfortunately, one of the show’s characters, Kat Hernandez, will not be returning this season. In a recent interview, Barbie Ferreira, who played the role, explained her reasons for leaving the show after Season 2.
Lack of direction for her character made Ferreira leave Euphoria
Barbie Ferreira played a confident, body-positive high schooler navigating identity, relationships, and self-worth in the show. While making an appearance on the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast, Ferreira explained that her departure from the show was in no way dramatic, contrary to what some media outlets had reported. She said that the direction her character was heading wasn’t “fleshed out” enough to warrant a return to the role.
“In fact, it was kind of the opposite of dramatic, where it was a long process of being like, ‘I don’t know if this is it for me,’” she said, adding, “And then having conversations with people and us trying to figure out how to make Kat a fully fleshed-out character, and it just wasn’t going anywhere.”
The actress further stated that there were long and detailed discussions with the production team about her character arc, but they couldn’t “land on anything” that would provide substance. Instead, she chose to prioritize more substantive roles in indie projects that would be creatively fulfilling, rather than being a background character in a high-profile show.
“The thing is, I don’t need to be on the biggest TV show on earth if I’m not, like, acting, you know?” she continued.
“I would rather do an indie movie where I’m acting, I’m flexing my muscles, I’m being creatively asked to do things rather than kind of sitting around to be a background character,” she added.
Moving toward independent films, she is looking to pursue acting opportunities that offer greater range and depth. Safe to say, she has no hesitation in distancing herself from projects where her character lacks growth. “At the end of the day, [I] was like, ‘I believe in myself as an actress. And I want to see my career look a little differently than this. It’s okay if it’s not, like, the hit TV show.’ It’s fine. I did that.”
Do you agree with Barbie Ferreira’s decision to leave such a hit show? Let us know in the comments section below.
