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- Barbie Ferreira, I have a question.
So everyone's talking about Euphoria
but when you read the script for the first time
did you ever kind of imagine that so many people
would be connecting to this story?
- Well, when I read the script, it was like very obvious
that it was very different than anything that's out there
and that excited me in a way that you know was just so
I was like I need to do it, I was so attached to this role,
even before I got it, and everyone's like
"um girl, that is not your role yet." (laughs)
- How were you able to bring in your own experiences
as kind of like a teenager to the role of Kat?
- Well, I just have this deep understanding of like
escapism and the internet because that's,
I've been on the internet for like almost,
since I was like 10 or 11
and like, I just know how it feels to be invisible
in school and have friends around but just feel so lonely
and like you don't have like a safe space to articulate
like how you feel or, you know show your talents,
like fan fiction writing.
So I have this deep understanding of that.
- Is it strange that so many people have connected
to your character of Kat?
When people come up to you do they treat
you like your character?
- You know that's also something I've been noticing
is like a lot of my comments is like,
why would you do that to Ethan,
and I'm like you know I'm a 22 year old woman
who is not Katherine Hernandez, right?
But it's great because it like my first
really, like big acting experience, so I'm learning
about how people like kind of view you as your character
but it's, you know, I I don't mind if people think I'm Kat.
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- I love that your Instagram you are so transparent
and honest, but is there ever been a time when you posted
something and you're like shit, I shouldn't have done that.
- Oh my god, like yeah. - All the time.
How do you deal with that sort of pressure,
to kind of talk to such a big audience who are like
hanging on every word you say?
- I love social media, I've been on it for so long
and the way I communicated with my followers was very much
like an intimate kind of thing before, and now it's
kind of like in the public, so it's a little bit
different dynamic that I have.
But I just try to keep it myself but I also know
that I can be a little crazy, like you know I'm posting
a little too much honesty, you know, like I have always
have something to say, so I try to dial it back
and really just get that energy into my personal life.
- A lot of people kind of knew you from YouTube
and you know your online presence, and your modeling,
so how did you manage to make that jump into acting?
- I had a goal at 21 that I wanted to start acting,
when I starting modeling, I was like, this is going to be
a thing that is going to help me, so everything is
strategic, it's really hard to be a bigger girl
and go to auditions because people are like uh like
you look too like you look too mature for this character
which is like just like you know coded language
for you know, um, your hip's big.
- How do you deal with that kind of criticism that's like
physical?
- Since I was like 16 like that's been the thing in my life
people like always like the two cents on my body.
Hi.
- look at you still doing the grapefruit diet.
- Yep I literally want to die.
- Yeah, it's only bad for the first two weeks
then your stomach shrinks and you adjust and
you are reborn. (laughs)
- Oh, wow, can't wait.
- And it just goes right above me, but wasn't like that
the entire time, you know, there was at first,
there was very hard to kind of unpack the fact that
I'm never going to be a skinny girl that I always wanted
to be and that it doesn't mean that I can't do what I want
I just have to reframe everything and not just be like
if I ever lose 40 pounds I can be an actress, like
whatever it was.
And it's just very special to me, I think that like
having that whole thing and feeling bad about myself
but like really learning and exploring what it is
to be me and what I like in people and what I want to do
with myself, how my energy is, and the kind of creativity
that I can bring.
But also - cause looks are just
You know, I'm over thinking about like what I look like.
- You look different.
- I changed.
- A lot of women who have sat there have told me about
all the no, no, no's that they've heard in their careers
so how was the sort of rejection strengthened you?
- Um, rejections my middle name sister.
Um, yeah, I just, at first it was really hard
but then I realized like everything rejection
is just like,
I mean in the beginning, like with modeling
people would just like drop me the night before
and would be really upset and I'm like (mumbles)
but I just realized it's just the nature of it,
if I get caught up on it, and it's always
there's always something that you could be doing.
That also, like you know, so it was it was hard at first
but now I'm kind of, I'm chiller about it.
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