Actress Elise Luthman On Horror Movies And Role In HBO’s “Euphoria”

This young actress is taking this industry by storm!

Over the years actress Elise Luthman has quickly made her presence known on our screens. You may recognize her from her roles on Netflix’s “Politician” and Nickelodeon’s “Side Hustle”. She recently made headlines for her role as ‘Sandy’ in the HBO hit series ‘Euphoria”.

We had the amazing honor of talking with Elise about ‘Death Link’, co-writing a series, and more!

I saw on your social media that you enjoy listening to Earth Wind & Fire’s Let’s Groove. What is it about that song that gets you moving and grooving on the dance floor?

E: “Fabulous question. Well, music is a huge part of my life. I heal through music. There are certain songs, like Let’s Groove, that help me release whatever stress I had been holding onto. There are two types of brains, one that hears the lyrics of a song more, and one that hears the music of a song more. While having great lyrics (like Let’s groove definitely has) is a plus, the music is what speaks to my soul. Once I hear the first few notes of Let’s Groove, the world is a better place. (:”

You’ve said before that even though you’ve done a lot of horror films, you still can’t actually watch horror movies. Can you watch your own?

E: “Yes! My horror movies are the only movies I don’t have a problem watching! When you’re on set cracking jokes or talking about your favorite book with the guy in scary demon prosthetics, it adds a lighter energy to it.”

Since you had aspirations of getting into horror films before actually getting a gig, what did you do to prepare yourself once you were casted?

E: “Oh man, I had no idea how to prepare! It was such a different genre than I was used to, so I just jumped in the deep end and knew I’d figure out how to swim. I was, however, incredibly lucky on the first horror film that I had the privilege of being in. I was surrounded by seasoned horror film veterans. My fellow cast mates, the director, and the producers taught me so much about the horror genre and welcomed me with open arms. It was a pretty rad way to get introduced to horror!”

How is acting in this genre different than other genres?

E: “This genre is unique in many ways. The energy, cadence, the way you move through a scene and have a rhythm of your own. Each script has a different energy, so it’s hard to group every horror script into one summary. I would say from my experience, I work on a different vibrational level when I’m on a horror set.” 

Let’s talk about Death Link! What was it like to be a part of that cast?

E: “Oh, what a set that was! There was so much chemistry between the cast! We were all like one big group of friends right away. There are multiple people that are close to me in my life right now that I met from that set. I will always be thankful for getting cast in that production.”

I have to say, my favorite scene in the film is when you go off on Jeremy for lying to you about drugs. I feel like you really got to show your range in that scene, going through your emotions of being angry and shocked. How did you prepare to pull out such strong emotions in that scene? 

E: “Ahh! Thank you! That scene was hilarious, because I had never been around so much weed in my life! Now, when it comes to pulling out the strong emotions, every role that I play I bring a little piece of myself to. I keep it honest and grounded. While that situation with Jeremy never happened to me in real life, there have been times I was lied to and felt betrayed. I took a piece of that memory, let it bring me to an honest place, then I built the character on that. One more thing I will say about strong emotional scenes, is to use your body. When you’re really angry, frustrated, or upset in real life, think about the experiences in your body that go on. Maybe short and sharp breathing, shaking hands, tense muscles, etc. When you’re filming a scene, your body doesn’t know you’re acting. Before I start the scene I will take a lot of fast breaths to get my heart rate going, flex a lot of my muscles to get them tight, etc. Once you bring out those real body feelings, you’re planted in the emotion of the scene and can move around freely to create honest work.”

Let’s go to Euphoria! How did you land that role of playing a student that’s auditioning for cassie in Lexi’s play?

E: “It was a wildly fast turn around! I submitted my audition through a self-tape (this was already in covid times) and later that week my agent called to tell me I booked it! It was straight to booking, which always feels nice haha! There’s a funny story about the filming. When we got to set we were given a paragraph that had been added to the scene, and two minutes to memorize it before going on camera. It got us all on our A-game right away!”

You’ve been acting for over a decade at this point. Tell me how have your skills on scene evolved, and what more do you feel you need to work on? 

E: “My skills have transformed over this decade! I’ve worked with so many fabulous coaches and directors who have encouraged me to push my limits and open my eyes to developing my craft. Acting is a profession that demands you to understand humans. In these past years I’ve been learning so much about myself which helps me navigate each and every character. I really have such a passion for this craft. Human emotion is such a beautiful thing, and having the opportunity to bring to life characters that connect to so many people I will never even know is just damn special.

As for what I feel I need to work on? I can… not… WAIT to see the next piece of the puzzle I get to add to my collection of acting understanding. I would like to sharpen my navigation through the complex roadmap of emotions, and get more in-tune so I can fluidly travel that wild ride.I will, however,  always be learning, and there will always be room to grow. Every day I’m learning something that I can add to my repertuar. The most beautiful acting isn’t acting at all, it’s being. I truly believe that strengthening yourself everyday will elevate you to be a better actor, so that’s what I’m working on. (:”

Another thing I noticed on your social media is that you call yourself “a recovering people pleaser.” What negative effects were you experiencing from being a people pleaser, and was there a particular moment in your life that made you refrain from doing that?

E: “Ha! Yes it does say that in my bio! I was a people pleaser for many years of my life. I’ve learned that my nature is to give. I love giving and helping others. I did have to learn, though, to balance giving to others and giving to myself. You can’t do anyone any good in this world if you’re giving away your light. It’s all about balance.”

You are a triple threat in the film world, you mainly act but you have a credit for writing and producing. What are some other talents that you have outside of those?

E: “Oh yes, that writing and producing credit is from a Web Series that I co-wrote and produced with my best friend Julienne Green! It’s so much fun when I get to work behind the camera and have a change of perspective!

As for passions outside of the industry,  I love working on cars and motorcycles! I’m also always looking for a way to feed my creativity, like making my own candles, painting on denim jackets and pants, cooking, gardening, and composting. I’m all about filling my time with things that make me happy. (: Thank you so much for investing your time in these questions, I appreciate all your work!!”

Photo Credit: Randy Savage

Janesha Jones– Movies/TV Show Editor– Janesha Jones is a pop culture and celebrity news freelance writer who is not only interviewed a few celebrities but has also worked in radio. She enjoys interviewing people to learn their stories and help their fans and listeners learn about them as well.