Featured Image Credit: HBO
Topics: Euphoria, Sydney Sweeney, HBO, Film and TV, Celebrity
Emily Brown
Sydney Sweeney left very little to the imagination when her Euphoria character Cassie sought to entertain her OnlyFans audience in the latest episode of the HBO show, so much so that creators would have been limited by federal law if it weren't for a simple loophole.
In the episode 'America My Dream', which aired tonight (April 19), Sweeney's character can be seen fully topless as she poses for her fans, before later appearing almost completely naked aside from a cap, shin pads and shoes, with only her most private parts covered with her hands.
Needless to say, this is some pretty NSFW viewing, and would no doubt fall into the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) definition of 'obscene, indecent and profane content'.
The commission describes obscene content as that which appeals 'to an average person's prurient interest', depicts or describes 'sexual conduct in a "patently offensive" way', and is 'taken as a whole, lack serious literary, artistic, political or scientific value'.
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Meanwhile, indecent content is categorized as that which portrays 'sexual or excretory organs or activities in a way that is patently offensive, but does not meet the three-prong test for obscenity'.
The FCC bans the broadcasting of obscene content at all times of the day, while indecent and profane content are prohibited on broadcast TV and radio between 6am and 10pm.
So how exactly was HBO able to air Cassie's raunchy behavior at 9pm ET?
The simple loophole comes down to the fact that HBO is a cable channel, with the FCC explaining: "The same rules for indecency and profanity do not apply to cable, satellite TV and satellite radio because they are subscription services."
Even so, Sweeney's full-frontal appearance - undeniably some of her most explicit scenes yet - will no doubt have shocked viewers, especially after Euphoria fans were already taken aback by her character's 'puppy play' exploits and scenes of her dressed as a baby in the latest season.
In one scene, Cassie is joined by her fiancé, Jacob Elordi's Nate Jacobs, who holds Cassie on a leash while she's dressed in a corset, a headband with animal ears, and makeup to look like a dog's nose.
While the scene sparked backlash, Euphoria's creator Sam Levinson defended the scene as he told The Hollywood Reporter: "[Cassie] has got her dog house and her little dog ears and the nose, and that has its own humor, but what makes the scene is the fact that her housekeeper is the one filming it.
"What we wanted to always find is the other layer of absurdity that we’re able to tie into it so that we’re not too inside of her fantasy or illusion — the gag is to jump out, to break the wall."
Levinson continued: "Some of these scenes we only lit with these ring lights that she would use... When you’re inside, it’s a beautiful, glowing front light, but then you jump out of it and it’s just a pool of light and everything surrounding it is dark. It’s just gnarly and jarring.
"We wanted to capture what she’s trying to show the audience and be inside of it, but then also pull back wider and see how depressing it is."