Bound by bouts of glitter, neon wings and rhinestone shadows, makeup artist Donni Davy describes the beauty of “Euphoria” season one as “dopamine-inducing.”
“The first season was very much about making a big splash,” she told WWD in an exclusive interview ahead of the highly anticipated release of season three. “It was makeup that’s meant to be seen from across the room. Big eye looks on raw, real skin, almost like runway fashion makeup vibes, but bring them to real life and kind of bridge that gap between the fantasy and the reality of the characters.”
It’s been seven years since the high school drama series first premiered on HBO Max, and four years since season two finished with several storylines hanging in the balance. The characters — Rue, played by Zendaya; Cassie, played by Sydney Sweeney; Maddy, played by Alexa Demie; Nate, played by Jacob Elordi; Jules, played by Hunter Schafer, and Lexi, played by Maude Apatow — are now navigating life in the real world; their dreams hinged on male approval. Rue is a drug mule, Cassie is an OnlyFans model, Maddie is an assistant, Jules is a sugar baby and Lexi is an aspiring producer.
“These girls are not experimenting with their makeup anymore,” Davy said. “They are deliberately putting certain looks on to get outcomes. And everyone’s desired outcome is not just their own self-expression. They’re all using their makeup in this somewhat male gaze way, in this very purposeful way that’s just completely connected to what’s written in the script.”
Alexa Demie in “Euphoria” season three.
HBO
Before filming began — and before the lighting, camera shots and wardrobe were factors in the big beauty decisions — Davy used the script and the storylines to inform her vision. Showrunner Sam Levinson brought his own ideas, too, encouraging the team to move beyond the whimsical and the experimental into the feral.
“Each season is really different aesthetically. So the makeup, just like the costumes, just like the production design, was never meant to be the same, and that’s all on Sam. Because Sam has this fearless way of, like, yeah, it’d be easy to kind of give a repeat of season one was successful, but evolves as an artist, and then the rest of us evolve as artists,” Davy said.
When thinking about the characters and the reality they find themselves in this season, Davy asked herself, “How are the girls using makeup purposefully to push themselves forward in their different scenarios?”
For Maddy, specifically, she could no longer exist in the fantastical. Her visage had to mature. “In season one, we wanted to make looks that were pause-worthy. Winged liner was always super effective on her. Sometimes it had rhinestones on it. Sometimes it had sparkling colors behind it. We just kind of could do anything for her but keep it in like a glam space where she looks like a pop star,” Davy said. Now, her eyes boast the same wing, but with a moody, high-contrast embellishment — think tightliner, ’90s matte and plum lips.
Hunter Schafer in “Euphoria” season three.
Eddy Chen
Jules — once known for their androgynous, “anything goes” aesthetic — is now finding middle ground between the minimal and the exaggerated. “She is trying to make money off of guys,” Davy explained. “I could have interpreted her sugar baby stuff much differently, more color, more pizzazz, but her costumes and the loft she’s living in are dark and moody and a bit solemn. So that’s where I took my cues.”
Cassie is doing her own thing. “In season one, she doesn’t really have too much of a makeup style, she’s goes a little bit more subdued, and then she really grows into it,” Davy said. “In season two, she’s inspired by the girls around her in her group and being able to take on those looks for different reasons, like getting Nate’s attention.” Cue Cassie’s hallway montage here.
Today, Cassie is still, in many ways, going heavy on the doe eyes and doll play, but in a subtle, skin-first kind of way. Rue, on the other hand, bears a completely naked visage. “There’s nothing on her face. Her character requires no makeup other than makeup to make her look less pretty,” Davy said, crediting the Half Magic Dew Lock Setting Spray as her hero product.
Sydney Sweeney in season three of “Euphoria.”
The beauty in season three would not have been possible without Half Magic. Launched in 2022 and backed by A24 productions, Half Magic is Davy’s cosmetic baby — a line of color-drenched makeup designed with the “Euphoria”-enamored in mind. The latest drop, featuring nine products, pays homage to the series and the “OG” fans in an entirely new way, with nods to storylines, motifs and viral moments woven throughout.
“This collection is the most personal Half Magic launch I’ve ever done, and it’s a little scary in that regard, just because it means so much to me,” Davy said. “I hope it means as much to the fans, and that they want to kind of just get it and keep it forever and feel like it’s really an artifact of the show. I feel like the hardcore fans, like the hardcore makeup fans, are gonna recognize every little tidbit.”
Half Magic x “Euphoria” will be available starting April 29 at Ulta.
