Jacob Elordi called the excruciating execution of his Euphoria character Nate Jacobs – of being buried alive and snake-bitten – ‘a cool way to go’ following Sunday’s broadcast of the popular HBO drama.
The character played by the Brisbane, Australia native, 28, was killed off in a gruesome sequence amid a botched attempt to collect a debt he owed.
Jacobs had been in heavy debt to gangster Naz (Jack Topalian), who put him in the coffin with a breathing apparatus as a pipe.
The plan was to keep Jacobs in the coffin for a planned three-day period while his spouse Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) would try to raise the funds, but a rattlesnake made its way down the pipe and fatally bit him.
‘Nate was someone who has made so many mistakes and made so many dark choices,’ Elordi said in a post-show recap on HBO about the seminal episode, which sets up next week’s season three finale.
He added, ‘It’s cool to see it all come to what it’s come to.’
Jacob Elordi called the excruciating execution of his Euphoria character Nate Jacobs – of being buried alive and snake-bitten – ‘a cool way to go’ following Sunday’s broadcast of the popular HBO drama. Pictured with costar Sydney Sweeney
Elordi said he didn’t feel claustrophobic filming the coffin sequence: ‘It was really nice, actually – it was quite peaceful in there.’
He described the physical feeling of being in the coffin: ‘My shoulders were touching the side and they couldn’t move my arms, then they would drill the lid on it and it would get dark.’
The actor, who has been linked to model Kendall Jenner, said the show’s creator Sam Levinson ‘wanted to shoot it with a real snake,’ which complicated the already-cramped conditions.
‘Snakes were rattling, which was really alarming when you are locked in a box,’ Elordi said.
Stunt staff on set stressed safety during production, the actor said, focused on providing him with a constant flow of oxygen while he spent ‘minimal time in the coffin.’
Elordi said ‘a boa constrictor’ used in the sequence was more sluggish than scary during filming.
‘He was super cute; he was really cuddly,’ Elordi said of the snake. ‘So he kind of just sidled up next to me and it was nice.
‘But he was really sleepy. He was a sleepy snake. I had to kind of nudge him to get him to come up. And that was it.’
Elordi said he didn’t feel claustrophobic filming the coffin sequence: ‘It was really nice, actually – it was quite peaceful in there’
The actor said stunt staffers stressed safety amid filming of the coffin sequence
Elordi said the show’s creator Sam Levinson ‘wanted to shoot it with a real snake,’ which complicated the already-cramped conditions
The Kissing Booth star called his exit from the series bittersweet after appearing on 23 episodes of the show’s three seasons.
‘This show is a massive part of – not just my career – but my life,’ he said. ‘It’s been amazing and I’m so proud of being a part of this.’
The character had changed drastically throughout the course of the series, with a backstory of seeing sex tapes made by his father Cal (played by the late Eric Dane) as a child.
Nate was abusive to those around him for the first two seasons of the series, first dating Maddy (Alexa Demie) before moving on to date Sweeney’s character Cassie, who he would wed.
Sweeney’s character Cassie seen in a still from Sunday’s shock episode
The character had changed drastically throughout the course of the series
The third season focused on his life five years later, as he was largely subdued and resigned to a grim fate as dangerous debt accrued.
Speaking to Entertainment Weekly last year, Elordi explained the nuance involving in portraying the villainous character on the series.
‘I act to understand a different experience, to express an experience that’s different to my own,’ he said. ‘Playing him taught me a lot about empathy and patience, which is strange with a character like that.
‘It’s a real treat to be a part of that show, and to play the quote-unquote bad guy. It’s always more fun. You don’t wanna play some morally superior, world-saving loser.’
