‘Euphoria’: Jacob Elordi ‘Can Empathize With’ Nate the Most About His Parents
On Euphoria, Nate Jacobs (Jacob Elordi) is a controversial character. While Nate is no doubt complex, few viewers of Euphoria root for the character because of his villainous ways. In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Elordi explained how finds ways to “empathize with” Nate.
[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers for season 2 episode 3 of Euphoria.]
Jacob Elordi does feel empathy for Nate on ‘Euphoria’
In Euphoria, Nate’s own parents appear to not like him. Because of this, Elordi finds it easy to feel empathy for the character he plays.
Speaking with Entertainment Weekly, Elordi said:
“Yeah, those lines play funny when you watch the show, but reading the script, I found them really heartbreaking. I have a really wonderful relationship with my parents, so that’s where I can empathize with him. Because I sort of look at my life and I imagine if my mom outwardly didn’t like me as a person, and if my dad thought I was a piece of s***, what that must do to a child is a terrifying thought. As an actor, I empathize with him, but I empathize with anybody whose parents can’t bring themselves to like them. That’s a crazy thing to think about a child. ‘I don’t like you.’ When I was doing the work on the scene, I just could not get over that thought. A grown adult who brought you into the world saying ‘I don’t like you.’ That’s f***ing heartbreaking. For me, as Nate, creating him, yeah I mean, it’s my job to have an abundance of empathy for him and to feel for him. Otherwise, I’d be judging him as I’m standing there on the screen, and it just wouldn’t work.”
Nate begins a relationship with Cassie on ‘Euphoria’
Because Nate’s parents do not outwardly like him, Nate struggles with his own relationships on the show. In the second season of Euphoria, Elordi’s character begins a secret relationship with Cassie Howard (Sydney Sweeney).
“I think he just has this very primal, ‘American Dream’ idea in him of having a very straight down the line, white picket fence, beautiful blonde life. This idea of love and family that he doesn’t have. This conventional storybook idea for him,” Elordi told Entertainment Weekly of Nate’s feelings for Cassie.
The actor continued, “And I think he’s doing that thing, that’s what you’re saying, trying to convince himself like ‘This is right in front of me. This is a good girl. She loves me. I have full control over her. This must be what love is.'”
The actor thinks Nate has difficulty understanding ‘what love is’
While Nate may think he has strong feelings for Cassie, Elordi told Entertainment Weekly that he believes Nate does not truly comprehend “what love is.”
“Because that’s his thing. The whole time I think he has no f***ing idea what love is. He’s not loved by his mom. He’s not loved by his dad. He’s not loved by his peers. He has no concept of what real love is. So he’s just trying the best he can to understand it,” Elordi said in the interview.
New episodes of Euphoria premiere every Sunday at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.
