INTERVIEW: Maude Apatow talks Euphoria

Maude Apatow has long been known – on and off screen – as the daughter of actor Leslie Mann and director Judd Apatow. She’s been in three major features, and in all of them (Knocked Up, This is 40 and Funny People) she played her real-life mom’s daughter.

Those movies were sweet and funny – very different from the role she takes on in Euphoria, as drug-addicted Rue’s sensible oldest friend.

Maude, who’s currently at #64 on IMDb’s StarMeter for her performance as Lexi Howard, let us in on her thoughts about the adults-only teen series, which has just been renewed for a second season by HBO.

What can you tell us about your character?

Lexi is Cassie’s younger sister and she’s a bit more shy and reserved than some of the other characters. She’s also Rue’s childhood best friend so we have a strange relationship because Rue’s gone down a very different path. Sam writes accurate relationships; everyone has friends you grew up with and it’s implied that you’ll always be there for each other, so it’s that kind of relationship. Having to deal with Rue and Lexi’s sister Cassie, I play the caretaker of both of them. The pressure of that isn’t talked about but that’s what I’ve thought about while playing this character; she’s almost using their issues as a distraction from her own stuff and keeping it together for everyone else.

What appealed to you about the show and how did you get involved?

I worked with Sam on Assassination Nation and people were talking about Euphoria while we were shooting that. I auditioned five times and I was so excited when I got it because Sam is amazing and so smart. He has such a unique vision and knows exactly what he wants, which is really cool to watch. He does these crazy camera movements and his shots are insanely complicated and sometimes they don’t make sense when he’s saying it but when you see it, it’s like, ‘That’s perfect.’

What sets Euphoria apart from other dramas depicting teenage life?

Sam writes teenagers really well. He does his research and watches YouTube videos and sees everyone on Instagram and he just knows how everything works; I think we all really appreciate that because it makes it a lot easier for us. And he’s so willing to listen to our ideas. If the dialogue doesn’t feel right or our characters wouldn’t say something, he wants to hear our opinions and he will change it. He’s not precious about anything, which makes you feel a lot more comfortable on set. It’s like he’s got our back, which is nice because the show is crazy sometimes.

How does your own experience of being a teenager compare?

I think the show is really different but the way that anxiety is talked about in the show is really refreshing because I’ve never really seen that before. As someone who struggles with that, it’s really amazing to see it represented on TV in an accurate way.

The first five episodes of Euphoria, the most talked-about teen show of 2019, are now streaming first on Showmax in South Africa, with the last three episodes coming express from the US.