Sydney Sweeney is having a moment. The 24-year-old actor stole every single scene she was in in Euphoria’s most recent season—even if she was playing the villain. She’s already back on set for a new movie, National Anthem, has graced more magazine covers than I can count, has a Marvel movie on the horizon, and is both starring in and producing the upcoming HBO show The Player’s Table.
Despite her undeniable star power, chatting with her on Zoom is like checking in on an old friend—minus the part where she’s in Hawaii for 72 hours to attend a fashion show and take a quick breather. Her makeup-free face, effortless waves, and brand-new bangs look like she came straight from the beach. It’s cliché to call celebrities relatable at this point, but she’s as close as one can get.
Her normalcy also applies to her mini vacay—she prepped with a bottle of Jergens self-tanner, just like the rest of us. “I actually use the Sol Water Mousse every day. I used it before I came here,” she tells me. She loves it so much that she’s recently partnered with the brand as one of its “Sol mates.”
“I like to use it before I fall asleep, because I wake up and it’s all developed and I feel confident,” she says. “It was such a natural and organic partnership for me because it’s who I am. I like feeling tan and being tan, because I don’t like wearing much makeup myself ,and it just makes me feel good. I don’t like lying out in the sun, so it is that perfect combination for me.”
To celebrate the partnership, Sweeney joined Glamour for a round of Big Beauty Questions. Read on for her beauty essentials, her must-have snacks, and her favorite Euphoria looks.
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Glamour: What’s one beauty rule you swear by?
Sydney Sweeney: Always drink water. Drink as much water as you possibly can.
What’s one beauty rule you think is B.S.?
There are so many I want to say, like the zits will go away real fast. They don’t. Or that makeup covers zits, and it doesn’t.
You had such an amazing run on Euphoria this season, and of course the makeup looks were iconic. Is there a Cassie look you would wear in real life?
The “Oklahoma” look definitely was, I think, one of Cassie’s prettiest looks. I know it was kind of out there, but there’s a closeup picture that Donni [Davy, the show’s makeup artist] took of my makeup, and the eyes are so beautiful. The way she took the eyeliner down, it was just so pretty. I think I would bring that makeup look into my real life. Clothingwise, I like the dress. The full get-up, I don’t know if I’d wear it all together, but the dress is cute. All of it together was a bit much— you take different parts of it and wear separately, then it’s cute.
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What about a Cassie look you would never wear?
I would probably never wear the “Maddy” two-piece.
You’ve talked a little bit about shooting some of your more revealing Euphoria scenes, and that you find it empowering. Do you do anything special to prepare, both mentally and with your body care?
I don’t even think about it, because it’s my character that’s going for it and not me, per se. For me, it’s easier and healthier for me to be able to just disconnect Sydney and I’m full Cassie in those moments. There’s no real preparation to like pump myself up or psych myself out for those kind of scenes.
You recently dyed your hair red, and it looks incredible. Why did you make the change and has it changed your beauty routine at all?
Well, I did it for a movie called National Anthem. My character’s name is Penny Jo, and I wanted to change it up from being blonde. I'’ve been a blonde for Cassie for a while, and I wanted something that felt more like my character. I cut my hair, gave myself bangs, and changed my color, because I wanted to embody Penny Jo in a different kind of way.
Love it. Are you a natural blonde?
I am a natural brunette actually, with a little bit of red.
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Let’s say you could only use three beauty products for the rest of your life. What are they and why?
The Sol Water Mousse, because being tan always makes me feel good. Two, the Laneige lip mask, because I cannot stand chapped lips at all and that’s just like my saving grace. It’s incredible. If I had to do a makeup product, because I’ve been doing skin care, I’ll pick mascara, because I like mascara. I’m always in love with anything Armani, so Armani’s mascara has been a treat.
What’s your go-to music when you’re getting ready?
So my hair stylist Flo, he is my deejay because I am the worst at picking music. Flo always sets the vibe. I tend to put on slower, maybe a little more melancholy kind of music, like your life feels like you’re in a music video and you’re staring out the window and you’re wanting to cry. He hates that. He just plays stuff that pumps us up and makes us feel good, and I appreciate him for that because we do need that in our lives.
What’s your favorite way to take a moment for yourself?
My favorite way to take a moment for myself is snuggling my dog, Tank.
What’s your power perfume?
My Way by Armani. I love the bottle because there’s like a little blue tip and it’s my favorite color. It’s taken me many, many years to find my scent; it’s a journey. You start to realize it smells different on different parts of your body. It’s a process, and this is the one I’ve been sticking with.
What’s the last TikTok rabbit hole that you went down?
I always like watching makeup tutorials, so I get sucked either into makeup tutorials or just really funny fails, but my TikTok does also pertain to a lot of house remodels. I found this one account where they find old abandoned houses and churches and schools, and they go in and they find letters people left. Like the letters of this lady from the 1800s, writing letters to her husband at war or her neighbors. Then there’s just like a series of all of the letters. I’m obsessed. It’s really sweet the way that they wrote. It’s so proper. I wish I wrote letters like that.
Do you have a confidence tip that you rely on before a red carpet or photo shoot if you’re not feeling your best?
If I’m not feeling the carpet, I just tell myself it’s a picture and it’ll be hopefully gone in 24 hours.
I get nervous before every carpet because I get nervous when I have to be Syd. I feel more confident when I’m different characters, because people are judging the characters and not me.
I get nervous before every single one, so I kind of pretend to be different characters when I go onto these carpets and do it that way.
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You have $20 in your pocket and you’re let loose in the drugstore. What are you buying?
I’m going home with Sol by Jergens Water Mousse. I’m going home with probably a pack of waters, because I only drink water. Then I usually tend to grab a piece of candy—I go between Kit-Kat bars, Reese’s cups, or Twix bars. I’m a chocolate girl.
If you could change one thing about beauty standards, either in Hollywood or in social media, what would you want to change?
I wish we didn’t evaluate and level people based on their beauty.
Who are some of the women who are inspiring you the most right now?
I always say my future self inspires me.
Bella Cacciatore is the beauty writer at Glamour. Follow her on Instagram @bellacacciatore_.
