Sydney Bernice Sweeney (born September 12, 1997 in Spokane, Washington) is an American actress.
She's best known for her breakout role as Cassie Howard in Euphoria, although she has a lengthy catalogue of acting credits outside of the show. She first gained attention for appearing in the TV shows Everything Sucks!, The Handmaid's Tale, and Sharp Objects.
Besides being an actress, Sweeney is a trained mixed martial artist, and has stated that she studies entrepreneurship and contract law so she can’t be screwed over by a contract she's given. Although Sweeney plays many traditionally feminine characters, she is also a highly skilled mechanic and enjoys fixing up vintage cars.
A noted aspect of her acting method is creating a full diary/memoir for each character she plays, which fleshes out their entire backstory from birth to better get into the role.
Sweeney received two Outstanding Supporting Actress Emmy nominations in 2022 for Euphorianote and The White Lotusnote .
She has a younger brother named Trent, who is also an actor.
Selected filmography:
- The Ward (2010) as Young Alice
- Kickin' It (2011) as Kelsey Vargas
- Stolen from the Suburbs (2015) as Emma Hudson
- Psycho Daughter (aka The Wrong Daughter) (2018) as Samantha Brown/"Danica Tyrrell"
- Everything Sucks! (2018) as
- Under the Silver Lake (2018) as Shooting Star
- Everything Sucks! (2018) as Emaline Addario
- The Handmaid's Tale (2018) as Eden Spencer
- Sharp Objects (2018) as Alice
- Big Time Adolescence (2019) as Holly
- Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019) as Diane “Snake” Lake
- Euphoria (2019-present) as Cassie Howard
- Nocturne (2020) as Juliet Lowe
- Downfalls High (2021) as Scarlett
- The White Lotus (2021) as Olivia Mossbacher
- Robot Chicken (2021) as the Barbie "twins"
- The Voyeurs (2021) as Pippa
- Night Teeth (2021) as Eva
- Reality as Reality Lee Winner
- Anyone but You (2023) as Bea
- Madame Web (2024) as Julia Cornwall/Spider-Woman
- Immaculate (2024) as Sister Cecilia Jones
Tropes & Trivia associated with her:
- Action Girl: She's trained in mixed martial arts, as mentioned above, and enjoys doing her own stunts.
- Ascended Extra: Her role in Sharp Objects was supposed to be for just one episode, but the director liked her so much her role was expanded.
- Dawson Casting: In both Everything Sucks! and Euphoria, she plays 16-year-olds despite already being in her 20s at the time of filming. Being cast as a teen in Madame Web, making her around a decade older than her character was supposed to be, was an extreme example of it.
- Dye Hard: Is a natural brunette, but is famous as a blonde. She even dyed her hair red in a more recent post◊.
- Method Acting: She writes diaries for the characters she plays in order to fully immerse herself in them.
- Ms. Fanservice: She's played many characters who are scantily clad, naked or have sex scenes, often with a focus on her large bust. As she puts it, she doesn't mind doing so if it fits the role.
- Nice Girl: Her characters often are this and she comes off as one in her interviews.
- Eden, despite being raised in the fundamentalist theocracy of the Republic of Gilead, is actually a very genuine person who values love and is sincerely religious.
- Cassie is also this, being very kind to her friends despite misogynistic boys repeatedly slut-shaming her. Though by the end of Euphoria's second season, she has fallen hard.
- Produced by Cast Member: She was both in a leading acting role and producer on Anyone but You and Immaculate.
- Scully Box: At 5’3, her co-stars almost always tower over her even when she's in heels.
