Hunter Schafer says ‘lifeline’ Euphoria helped her out of ‘raw’ depression
Hunter Schafer attends HBO’s “Euphoria” Season 2 photo call at Goya Studios on 5 January 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic for HBO)
Euphoria star Hunter Schafer said the HBO show helped her out of a “raw place” after the “worst depression” she’d experienced.
Schafer told i-D that her “bridge” episode between Euphoria’s first and second seasons, titled “F**k Anyone Who’s Not A Sea Blob”, holds a special place in her heart.
She said the episode, which she co-wrote, delved deeper into Jules’ “mind and her subconscious and her headspace”. Schafer added that working on it quickly “became a lifeline” for her.
“I was in a very f**king raw place, you know, it was the summer of 2020,” Schafer said. “Probably coming out of the worst depression I’ve ever had, and needing somewhere to put all of that energy.”
She continued: “When I say that episode really became a lifeline, I mean it.”
Hunter Schafer added that “half of what Jules is talking about in that episode” is about her relationship with Rue (Zendaya) and her discontent at school. “The other half is just a 17-year-old trans girl, still figuring out who she is, and debating queerness within her head – what that means for her as a trans person,” Schafer said.
“All of these new new parts of herself that she’s still uncovering, all intersect and create one big mess that she’s trying to untangle, or find some sense within.”
Euphoria was Schafer’s first acting gig. Prior to the show she was well-known as a model, and for her legal challenge against an anti-trans bathroom bill in North Carolina.
She told i-D that Euphoria’s first season felt like a “super intense acting course”. While shooting the pilot episode, Schafer recalled thinking that acting was “so f**king hard”, and she felt like she had “no idea what I’m doing”.
In a separate video interview with i-D, Hunter Schafer also revealed the adorable and random nickname she and Zendaya, who plays Rue on the hit series, have been using for each other.
When asked about the first word that comes to mind when she thought of her Euphoria co-star, Schafer responded: “Boob.”
“We call each other ‘boob’ or ‘boobies’,” Schafer explained. “It’s endearing, you know?”
