Sam Levinson has been at the center of quite a few controversies over the past few years, beginning with the success of HBO’s “Euphoria.” There have been accusations of long hours, poor work environment, and even misogyny on the set of his award-winning series. But according to one star of “Euphoria,” a lot of the negativity surrounding Levinson comes from a place of misunderstanding.
In a new interview with GQ, Colman Domingo, who stars in “Euphoria,” talked about working with Sam Levinson on the series. As you might expect, the actor is complimentary of Levinson and doesn’t really understand why there’s so much hate towards the creator.
“Sam’s my friend. I haven’t talked to him about this because I know that it seems that there’s a lot of different stories swirling around. I have no idea,” Domingo explained. “I like to mind my business. Until it’s something that affects me, I mind my business.”
As for whether or not people are correct about Levinson, Domingo thinks the writer-director is “misunderstood.”
“I know Sam very well, and I know his heart. I know his kindness and his generosity,” he said. “People want to villainize him, for whatever reason, which I also think is very interesting, that people want to villainize someone who has been so open and honest about their own struggles with addiction and chooses to write about it so we can heal our hearts and ourselves.”
The controversy surrounding Levinson started years ago when “Euphoria” star Barbie Ferreira left the show abruptly. This was followed by reports that hinted at Levinson exploiting his actors. Then came the massive drama that surrounded “The Idol.” Honestly, it’s quite a bit to recap and Google is your friend. Most recently, people are talking about Levinson, wondering why “Euphoria” Season 3 is being delayed indefinitely.
Regardless of all the controversy, it seems as if his actors are largely standing by Levinson, including Domingo. So maybe it is a bit more nuanced than reports make it out to be.