"Succession" star Sarah Snook is opening up about mistreatment by industry professionals early in her career.
In an interview with The Sunday Times, the actor shared that a casting director said she nearly didn't land a part because she was a "nobody" before being told to alter her appearance.
"We don't really want you because you're a nobody, but the director and the writer think you're good for the role," she recalled the casting director saying, according to Variety. "So what we'll do is change all of you so that you're marketable: We'll whiten your teeth, darken your hair, we'll give you a personal trainer so you can lose weight and look the part."
Snook said she agreed to the conditions because "in order for me to be successful, I have to be all the things that aren't me."
During her interview, Snook also revisited the memory of being chided by a film producer in front of the cast and crew for eating the "tiniest bit of chocolate cake." A costume designer had to intervene and encouraged her to keep eating the cake.
"And all the while I am dying inside," she said. "The infantilizing of women, to not be able to make their own decisions, why would we do that to women?"
Snook is known for her portrayal of Shiv Roy in the HBO series "Succession." The role recently earned her a second Golden Globe and put her in contention for an Emmy.
Looking back at her time on the show, Snook said she shed tears during the airing of the series finale in May.
"I was three or four weeks postpartum, the hormones were raging," she said. "But it was just the chrysalis of knowing that's the end of this really important, special part of my life."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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