Zendaya says filming two seasons of Euphoria "feels like five"

You can take Zendaya’s word for it, because she grew up on the Disney Channel and has a lot of seasons of television under her belt. She also literally still has “Rue scars” (like, actual scars) from playing the role, which she describes as “emotionally and physically draining” but “so rewarding.” Elsewhere she reflects that “I don’t want to be miserable just because the character’s miserable. On Euphoria, we’d have really, really tough days. I’m like, ‘OK, gotta go cry and knock down a door real quick,’ and then I’ll come back like, ‘Hey, Cheesecake Factory? What are we getting for lunch?’ I try my best to leave them at work and go home and live my life and be a person.”

Whatever friction may be going on behind the scenes—there are rumors of a schism between Zendaya and writer/director/creator Sam Levinson, which are unconfirmed—the actor remains proud of her work and the show. She’s said before that she appreciates how people love and connect to Rue, and she feels a responsibility to “make sure that she’s looked after as a character.” And despite how heavy Rue’s challenges are, after two seasons (that feel like five), she feels “used” to playing her. “It feels like a skin that you just slip on. Rue just falls into me. I’m not thinking about it so much,” she says in the Actors on Actors interview. “It’s just like, ‘Oh, she’s here now.'” That’ll be a useful skill to have if Euphoria ever actually does come back.