Sydney Sweeney desperately wants the cut pole-dancing scene from Euphoria to be released. The show has ended, leaving fans with the possibility that Rue reincarnated into a calf, but Sweeney says there are still scenes left on the cutting room floor, including one where her character Cassie pole dances.
Sweeney's Preparation for the Scene
The 28-year-old actress took the scene seriously, undertaking lessons to prepare. The setup involved Cassie and Maddy visiting The Silver Slipper strip club for a photoshoot. Speaking to Vanity Fair, Sweeney explained: 'Cassie starts to see the girls on stage, and she gets really excited. She says, “Wow, these girls are beautiful. I could do this.” She gets wasted and goes up on the stage. She gets all dressed up and Cassie pole dances.'
Deleted Scene Disappointment
Euphoria creator Sam Levinson informed Sweeney a few days before the scene was set to air that it had been cut. Sweeney recalled: 'I was like, “Totally get it.” I definitely was disappointed. But he said, “Maybe we should release it as behind-the-scenes footage or deleted scenes.” I replied, “Please do, because I put a lot of hard work into that.”'
Insight from Co-Star Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, who plays Alamo, also referred to the scene, explaining it as part of Cassie's frenemy Maddy being in debt to his character. He told Collider: 'Part of that debt was also going to be paid by me owning Cassie, and basically, everything she’s earning is going directly into my pocket. She was demonstrating how she was going to work in my club. I don’t know how much you can say about those, but they were interesting and great to shoot.'
Defending the Show
Akinnuoye-Agbaje defended Euphoria against criticism, arguing in an interview with Metro that 'these things actually happen.' He added: 'Let’s just put it this way, Alamo Brown is there to usher in a rude awakening for this younger generation of characters. They’re no longer in high school and some of them have dabbled on the other side of the law, and when you do that, there are some very strict consequences. I think the audience can really expect things to accelerate in not such a pleasant way. The characters are going to have to face those consequences in the world of Mr Brown.'
The season finale of Euphoria is available on HBO Max, Sky Atlantic, and NOW.
