Barbie Ferreira Reveals the Truth About Her Euphoria Exit

Barbie Ferreira thinks Kat simply outgrew her high school setting.

Seven months the Euphoria star announced she was exiting the HBO series ahead of season three—amid rumors she had a falling out with showrunner Sam Levinson—the 26-year-old is clearing the air on her departure.

"So, for me, when people ask me about Season 2, it's usually they come at me with, like, I was some sort of victim to Season 2 and I'm always like, ‘No, it's okay, promise. It's good,'" Barbie said during the April 3 episode of the Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard podcast. "I kind of got sucked into this drama that I never asked to be in and that I've never talked about."

She added, "I'm of the mindset that if it doesn't exit I'm not going to address it because then I'm adding fuel to it. It's taken on a life of its own. Don't believe everything you read."

And as for the rumors that she walked off the show's set after an argument with Sam during season two? According to Barbie, that didn't happen.

"I actually did not walk off set," she said. "I did sprain my ankle once and had to go get an X-ray. Maybe that's what they mean." (In February 2022, a source close to production also denied the rumors of an on-set fight to E! News.)

Simply put, the actress didn't think there was "a place" for Kat to go moving forward.

"I think there were places she could have gone," she continued. "I just don't think it would have fit into the show. I don't know if it was going to do her justice, and I think both parties knew that. I really wanted to be able to not be the fat best friend. I don't want to play that, and I think they didn't want that either. I would've played her for as long as I was asked to depending on what the material was."

In the show's first season, viewers were introduced to Kat, a high school student who penned erotic fan fiction and became a part-time dominatrix. But by the second season, fans noted a shift in her character arc that gave her less to do and included even less screen time.

"I feel like with Season 2 and certain parts of it, I felt was a kind of a struggle for both parties," she noted. "Sam, me…it was a struggle to find the continuation of her. So that was actually really hurtful watching it and seeing the fans get upset."

In fact, she felt like she may have even "overstayed" her welcome.

"For me, I actually felt good to be like, ‘Okay, I get to not worry about this and we both don't get too worried about this,'" Barbie shared. "Because it's exhausting."

As for the change, Barbie took her best guess on the writing, saying that Sam writes for "things that he relates to."

"I don't think he relates to Kat," she continued. "I like Kat, so I get to go on my own path. At first, I was like, ‘Oh, my God, I'm a flop. I'm a loser.' It really has been a good thing."

Last summer, the Unpregnant actress broke the news that she would be saying farewell to the HBO hit ahead of its third season.

"After four years of getting to embody the most special and enigmatic character Kat, I'm having to say a very teary-eyed goodbye," she wrote in an August 2022 Instagram Story post. "I hope many of you could see yourself in her like I did, and that she brought you joy to see her journey into the character she is today."

But fans won't have to wait too long to see Barbie on their screens as not long after revealing her Euphoria exit, she landed her next role in the upcoming psychological thriller, House of Spoils.