Why Sydney Sweeney Chose A Rom-Com With Glen Powell After The White Lotus And Euphoria

Sydney Sweeney in Big Time Adolescence.
(Image credit: Hulu)

Sydney Sweeney is a very talented young actress, who's probably best known for playing the incredibly emotional Cassie on HBO’s Euphoria and the snarky yet confident Olivia on The White Lotus. She’s even got a new movie called Reality (which can be streamed with a Max subscription) that just screams perfection due to its Rotten Tomatoes score. But with all of these dark roles under her belt, Sweeney is switching things up a bit by taking on a rom-com with Glen Powell, and the actress explained just why she was ready to take on the project. 

Both Euphoria and The White Lotus, landed Sydney Sweeney Outstanding Supporting Actress nominations at the 2022 Emmy Awards. Thanks to her increased notoriety, the 25-year-old actress is in a position where she can be choosier with her roles. With that, Sweeney told Variety that she relished the opportunity to work on the upcoming comedy, and it sounds like she really needed it from a personal standpoint:

It was so much fun, honestly. We laughed every single day and the cast and the crew were just a bunch of really great people, and we all got along. It felt like summer camp. It was a great breather from everything else I’ve done. That was the first time I’ve done something like that. So I definitely enjoyed it. And I might look for some more.

Considering the darker productions she's done, I can certainly understand why doing a rom-com with Glen Powell “felt like summer camp.” After a while, you just need a break from putting yourself in the shoes of emotionally-heavy characters and to find a role that relaxes you. The new movie, Anyone But You, is described as a modern take on William Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing. It sees two college arch-nemeses reuniting for a destination wedding only for the two to pretend to be a couple for their own personal reasons. The Sharp Objects actress felt like she was “living [her] best life” filming this rom-com film, so it’s no wonder she’d like to take on more films like this in the future.

Meanwhile, her newest movie, Reality, tells the true story of whistleblower Reality Winner who is interrogated by the police for her part in allegedly mishandling classified information. It seems that overall, the actress has no problem landing dramatic roles like these. And as she explains, the real battle is getting material that she doesn't do often:

There’s always people who see me as Cassie or see me as Olivia. They send me scripts that are just like that. It’s the ones I have to fight for that usually are the ones that I want that are different, like ‘Reality.’ I had to audition for it. I had to put myself on tape and send in my audition just like everybody else. It was the same for White Lotus. They didn’t think that I was right for ‘White Lotus,’ because I did Euphoria. So I put myself on tape, I auditioned for ‘White Lotus’ just like everybody else and had a call back like everybody else. I could get offered roles that are similar to the ones that I’ve played, but the ones that are different, the ones that surprise people that I do, are the ones that I usually have to fight for.

Let's hope she keeps fighting for them, because she definitely has the talent. Contrary to popular belief, she hasn't had the easiest go-around in the industry. She's talked about the obstacles stemming from the public’s reception to her Euphoria nude scenes. More recently though, she's been at the center of a flurry of rumors regarding her Anyone But You co-star.

The Internet's been speculating that she and Glen Powell may actually have a thing for each other, based on reports and social media pics. Speculation arguably ramped up when Powell’s then-girlfriend, Gigi Paris, unfollowed Sydney Sweeney on Instagram after they posted BTS photos that showed them looking chummy. Also, Powell and Paris broke up while the dating rumors circulated and a photo of Sweeney’s fiancée surfaced, which appeared to show him packing his bags. But now, it seems those these dating rumors have been debunked, especially after the Once Upon a Time in Hollywood actress was spotted with her engagement ring on for the first time in months.

All of that aside, it's wonderful that Sydney Sweeney is getting the opportunity to stretch her wings as an actress with this new rom-com. We'll see if this ultimately serves as the first of many romantic romps that she's able to star in. Don’t miss the chance to see Anyone But You, which is on the schedule of 2023 new movie releases, when it opens in theaters on December 15th.

Carly Levy
Entertainment Writer

Just your average South Floridian cinephile who believes the pen is mightier than the sword.