Hollywood has had its fair share of “It Girls” come and go through the decades, but Sydney Sweeney is one who has proved that she’s not going anywhere. The Washington native became interested in acting at an early age, after auditioning as an extra for a local indie film in Spokane. At 14, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dreams. Before she was catapulted into fame, Sweeney started out by booking small roles on shows like Heroes, 90210, Criminal Minds, and Pretty Little Liars. She also spent some time working on independent and low-budget films.
Although her breakthrough came with supporting roles in Everything Sucks!, The Handmaid’s Tale, and Sharp Objects, it wasn’t until her role as Cassie Howard in A24 and HBO’s hit series Euphoria that she earned mainstream recognition. Her work on the drama’s second season got her nominated for an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actress in 2022. In 2021, she garnered even more attention as Olivia Mossbacher in the anthology series White Lotus, which earned her another Emmy nomination. Sweeney has also appeared in and starred in a number of films, most notably Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Reality, Anyone But You, Madame Web, and 2024’s horror film Immaculate, which she also produced.
Before becoming a famous Hollywood actor, Sydney Sweeney worked on several movies and TV shows that might be surprising. These are 10 noteworthy roles she had before her big rise to fame.
10
‘The Ward’ (2010)
As Young Alice
One of Sydney Sweeney’s earliest roles was in John Carpenter’s most recent project, The Ward, a film which many horror fans look back on as being criminally underrated. Set in 1966, Amber Heard stars as a young woman named Kristen, who, after setting fire to an abandoned farmhouse for mysterious reasons, is involuntarily placed in North Bend Psychiatric Hospital, where she fails to recall anything about her life and becomes tormented by the vengeful spirit of a former patient.
Making the Most of Her Small Role
Sweeney plays the younger version of Mika Boorem’s character, Alice, the aforementioned ghostly presence who goes on a murderous rampage, working her way through the girls in the ward. Although her screen time is scant, and she hardly has any dialogue, Sydney gives an absolutely haunting performance, and so early on in her career. She was able to convey so much through the eyes, facial expressions, and body language alone. Her role might be small, but it’s essential to the plot and to the peril the main character finds herself in.
9
‘Grey’s Anatomy’ (2005 – Present)
As Erin Weaver in Season 11, Episode 6 – “Don’t Let’s Start” (2014)
- Release Date
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March 27, 2005
- Network
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ABC
- Directors
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Rob Corn, Kevin McKidd, Debbie Allen, Chandra Wilson, Allison Liddi-Brown, Jeannot Szwarc, Tony Phelan
- Writers
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Shonda Rhimes, Julie Wong, Jen Klein, Tameson Duffy, Meg Marinis
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Chandra Wilson
Dr. Miranda Bailey
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James Pickens Jr.
Dr. Richard Webber
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Justin Chambers
Dr. Alex Karev
Many famous actors have had guest appearances on ABC’s long-running medical drama Grey’s Anatomy. Christina Ricci, Sarah Paulson, Elisabeth Moss, Tessa Thompson, Keke Palmer, to name a few. Sydney Sweeney is included in that long list, having had a 10-second cameo in Season 11’s sixth episode, “Don’t You Start.” Her time on the screen might have been brief, but she put on an emotional performance.
A Small Scene Pre-Stardom
She plays Erin Weaver, the daughter of Jeremy (James McCauley) and Ellen Weaver (Lori Alan). Her dad, who came into the ER with heartburn, was initially assigned to Dr. Maggie Pierce (Kelly McCreary). After ruling out any cardiovascular issues, he was handed off to Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson), who figures out he has cancer.
8
‘Stolen from Suburbia’ (2015)
As Emma
One of Sweeney’s least-known projects is a made-for-TV Lifetime movie titled Stolen From Suburbia, which delves into human trafficking. Cynthia Watros (General Hospital and Lost) stars as Katherine Hudson, a single mother whose life is upended when her daughter Emma, played by Sweeney, is abducted by human traffickers. Desperate, but determined, she does everything in her power to find her daughter and bring her back home before it’s too late.
Quite Decent for a Lifetime Film
The movie may only sit at 31% on Rotten Tomatoes, but Watros and Sweeney give stellar, gripping performances. Sydney’s emotional range is on full display as her character goes from a rebellious teenage girl to a human trafficking victim trying to outsmart and survive her captors. This isn’t Sweeney’s only role in a Lifetime film. In 2018, not long before Euphoria put her on the map, she starred in Vivica A. Fox’s The Wrong Daughter, a story about a couple who welcome in the daughter they gave up 17 years prior.
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7
‘Pretty Little Liars’ (2010 – 2017)
As Willa in Season 7, Episode 2 – “Till Death Do Us Part” (2017)
While there are plenty of things about Rosewood that never made sense, Pretty Little Liars cultivated a huge, passionate, devoted fanbase. The YA thriller series was a huge hit, providing viewers with seven seasons of teenage angst, mystery, and dramatic twists. It follows a group of four teen girls — Hannah Marin (Ashley Benson), Aria Montgomery (Lucy Hale), Emily Fields (Shay Mitchell), and Spencer Hastings (Troian Bellisario) — who grew apart after their friend Alison DiLaurentis (Sasha Pieterse) went missing from one of their slumber parties. A year later, they reconnect after her body is seemingly found, and they begin receiving threatening texts from someone who goes by A and who knows all their secrets.
A Small but Iconic Role
Sydney Sweeney appears in the series finale, “Till Death Do Us Part.” She plays Willa, a student of Alison’s, who is part of the next generation of “liars.” Emily tries advising her not to be friends with the popular mean girl, Addison Derringer (Ava Allan), and to think for herself. She appears again in the final scene, which mirrors the show’s very first scene. The group of friends wakes up during their sleepover in a barn to find Addison, their ringleader, missing. Willa, already awake, walks back in and says, “She’s gone,” remarking how she thinks she heard her scream.
6
‘Along Came the Devil’ (2018)
As Ashley Winbourne
The Ward isn’t Sydney Sweeney’s only foray into horror before 2024’s Immaculate. She was in the low-budget ZMD: Zombies Of Mass Destruction (2009), Spiders 3D (2013), and Giant Killer Ants (2017). After gaining mainstream attention through Euphoria, she also appeared in Nocturne (2020) and Night Teeth (2021). In 2018’s Along Came the Devil, she played the lead role of Ashley, a high schooler with a troubled childhood who turns to the spirit world to find her missing mother, only to become possessed by a demonic force.
Driven by Sweeney’s Performance
The possession horror movie earned low ratings and mixed reviews, with some calling it a watered-down version of The Exorcist and a rehash of The Exorcism of Emily Rose. Despite its poor reception, Sweeney’s multifaceted performance as the protagonist is a noteworthy one. It’s not easy to go from playing a traumatized girl to the demon taking control of her, but she nailed it.
5
‘Everything Sucks!’ (2018)
As Emaline Addario
- Release Date
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2018 – 2017
- Directors
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Michael Mohan, Ry Russo-Young
- Writers
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Ben York Jones, Michael Mohan
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Peyton Kennedy
Kate Messner
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Jahi Di’Allo Winston
Luke O’Neil
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Quinn Liebling
Tyler Bowen
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When most people think about Sweeney’s TV projects pre-Euphoria and White Lotus, they usually recall The Handmaid’s Tale and Sharp Objects, but the actress had her breakout role in the Netflix original series Everything Sucks!. It was her first time being part of a core ensemble. Set in 1996 in the real-life town of Boring, Oregon, the teen drama follows a group of high school students who decide to band their drama club and A/V club together to make a movie that will make them get noticed.
A Bright Future Ahead of Sweeney
Despite favorable reviews and a considerable fanbase, the coming-of-age show became one of the many shows canceled by Netflix way too soon. The series, which has been dubbed by many as a modern Freaks and Geeks, honestly deserved more than one season. Sydney stars as Emaline Addario, a popular thespian with a flair for the dramatic and a great sense of fashion. Her character had some of the best development in the story.
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4
‘The Handmaid’s Tale’ (2017 – 2025)
As Eden Spencer in Season 2 (2018)
The Handmaid’s Tale might not have been the project that made Sydney Sweeney so popular, but it did get her noticed and immensely helped her career. Inspired by Margaret Atwood’s renowned novel of the same name, the dystopian thriller series is set in a world in which the former United States has been overthrown by a patriarchal totalitarian theocracy that treats women as property of the state, with the majority forced to bear children for the ruling elite due to a declining birth rate.
An Outstanding Performance
Sweeney has a recurring role in the second season as Eden Spencer, a pious 15-year-old assigned as a child-bride to Nick Blaine (Max Minghella), a central figure in the story of the protagonist, Elisabeth Moss’s June. Her seven-episode arc sees her go from an obedient girl with fantasies of love to a rebellious one who recognizes her oppression and women’s lack of autonomy. The demise of her character served as a major catalyst for the narrative. This was the role that showcased Sweeney’s talents and skills, proving that she’d go far.
3
‘Sharp Objects’ (2018)
As Alice In Episode 3 – “Fix”
2018 was a big year for Sydney in television. Everything Sucks! aired in February, The Handmaid’s Tale in April, and in July, Sharp Objects was broadcast on HBO. The eight-episode miniseries is based on Gillian Flynn’s (Gone Girl) novel of the same name. Amy Adams stars as Camille Preaker, a troubled Chicago reporter who returns to her Missouri hometown to cover the case of two murdered young girls. Under the roof of her estranged mother, Adora (Patricia Clarkson), she forms a connection with her teenage half-sister, Amma (Eliza Scanlen), and is forced to confront her traumatic past.
A Memorable Role
In the third episode, Sweeney appears through a series of flashbacks as Camille’s roommate, Alice, during the protagonist’s stay at a psychiatric hospital. There, the journalist formed a bond with the sullen teen, connecting through their struggles with self-harm and love for music. For the rest of the show, Alice’s memory profoundly haunts Camille. Sydney’s stint in the murder mystery proved how she could stand on her own alongside a great talent like Adams.
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2
‘Under the Silver Lake’ (2018)
As Shooting Star #2
Andrew Garfield stars as Sam, an unambitious, impressionable, conspiracy-obsessed 33-year-old man living in Silver Lake, Los Angeles. After meeting his new neighbor Sarah (Riley Keough) one night, the two share a kiss, and he becomes infatuated. The next morning, he finds that she and her roommates have disappeared and that someone has left a strange symbol on their door. Driven to find her, he explores the underworld of L.A., immersing viewers in a fever dream of conspiracies, cults, and subliminal messages.
Sweeney’s First Time Working With A24
David Robert Mitchell’s Under the Silver Lake is Sweeney’s first A24 project. The surrealist neo-noir thriller is one of the company’s most divisive features, with some calling it an underrated future cult classic and others thinking it a mess. Without giving away too many spoilers, the Immaculate star played a small role as Shooting Star #2. She managed to radiate through the screen and capture audiences’ attention with only a few lines.
1
‘Clementine’ (2019)
As Lana
Written and directed by Lara Gallagher, Clementine is a romantic drama with erotic thriller elements. Following a painful breakup, Karen (Otmara Marrero), breaks into her ex’s lake house to lick her wounds and lay low. Not long after arriving, she meets an entrancing 19-year-old named Lana, played by Sweeney. Drawn to each other, Karen and Lana quickly become infatuated with one another. When handyman Beau (Will Brittain) enters the picture, a wrench is thrown into the dynamic between the two women.
A Visually Striking Mood Piece
Clementine is a beautiful film about love, longing, youth, identity, truth, and lies. The movie boasts stunning shots and gorgeous cinematography. While it received mixed reviews, many praised Sweeney’s performance and her chemistry with Marrero. It’s definitely worth watching, especially for fans of Sweeney.
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