When season one of Euphoria debuted on HBO in the summer of 2019, no one could have predicted the cultural impact it would have on fashion and beauty. If you are one of the few who haven’t seen it, the intense, dark teen drama focuses on a group of high school students as they navigate love, friendship, and identity in a world of sex, drugs, trauma, and social media.
The impact of Euphoria’s stylized makeup can be seen everywhere, including the recent runways of fall 2022’s New York Fashion Week. Nearly every collection featured extremely glittered, bejeweled, dramatically winged, or brightly-colored neon eye looks clearly inspired by the show’s groundbreaking makeup looks.
Recreations also appeared on Instagram, TikTok, and even down red carpets. Almost three years later, the Euphoria beauty movement continues to infiltrate the pop culture zeitgeist and inspire its fans to express themselves through makeup.
After a long hiatus due to the pandemic, season two aired in January and wrapped recently with the eighth-episode finale, reigniting what’s been dubbed the “Euphoria makeup craze.” The woman behind this craze is Emmy Award-winning makeup artist Doniella (Donni) Davy, who serves as the production’s Department Head.
Her bold, unconventional makeup designs incorporate graphic eyeliner, neons, pastels, grunge glitter, face gems, and foil to illustrate not just each character’s style, but how they are thinking and feeling in any given scene. It’s almost as if the makeup is a character, much like how New York was to Sex and the City. Davy’s creations propel the character arcs and their storylines forward.
Show creator, writer, and director Sam Levinson praises Davy’s makeup work on Euphoria as “cinematic storytelling.” He encouraged Davy to push the boundaries and existing norms through her makeup.
To accomplish the looks, she drew inspiration from real-life teens and social media, along with ‘60s models and ‘70s glam rock. “Emotional glam,” as Davy refers to her makeup looks, can symbolize the emotions and experiences each character is going through at any given time.
One example of this can be seen in the carnival episode in season one. Rue, a 17-year-old struggling with addiction played by Zendaya, is wearing messy, smudged, upside-down triangular gold glitter under her eyes, evoking the image of a sad clown and representing how out of control she feels.
Jules (played by Hunter Schafer) is the new-to-town teenager who forms an intimate relationship with Rue. Her makeup evolution is bright, colorful, and abstract, signifying hope as season one begins. It then morphs into darker looks as the episodes progress, representing her character’s struggles.
Davy and Schafer collaborated on Jules’ looks for the series (as she does with all cast members) and they decided on a harder aesthetic for Jules’ prom look during the season one finale to portray the newfound energy she brought home from her trip to the city during the episode prior. This look included lining her eyes in red, using metallic eye stickers, and framing her face with contrasting dark strands of hair.
Rounding out the cast of female leads are Maddy (Alexa Demie), Cassie (Sydney Sweeney), Lexi (Maude Apatow), and Kat (Barbie Ferreira), all of whom have their own unique storylines that play out with the help of the makeup department.
This is even more impressive when you factor in the amount of prep time, or lack of, that Davy had prior to filming: Just one day. She has minimal time to test any makeup looks, and the collaborations with actors happened with a flashlight in dark corners of the set while shooting commenced in five-to-10-minute sessions of downtime.
Davy also drew inspiration from Gen Z, who she sees as risk-takers with the confidence to be their truest selves. They’re comfortable with the fluidity of sexual and gender identities and are championing defying beauty norms by reinterpreting how makeup is used.
After shooting the pilot for HBO, Davy had to rethink her original designs; they were not registering the way she had hoped with the dark, grainy cinematography that deeply relied on colored light sources and strong shadows. Levinson was amazed at how Davy adjusted not only to suit the lighting he and cinematographer Marcell Rev created but to better service the characters as well.
Davy replaced colorful makeup with highly pigmented neons and used harsh lines and color blocking rather than blended, contoured looks. Because so many shadows were already being cast on the actresses’ faces due to the lighting design, she found that crisp, bold lines better defined the makeup and ensured it wasn’t lost in the darkness of the shadows. Adding more rhinestones, metallic stickers, and glitter completed the metamorphosis.
The lighting and makeup beautifully interact as powerful tools in Euphoria’s storytelling process. For Davy’s part, she created a conversation, movement, and cultural shift within the beauty world, and is launching her own makeup line this spring called Half Magic.
Two years in the making, the brand was created by Davy in collaboration with the creators of Euphoria and A24 Studios, which launched its beauty division last year named Rules Beauty LLC (a reference to the two main characters Rue and Jules). The name of Half Magic was derived from the line consisting of tools and products directly catering to, and inspired by, the Euphoria makeup phenomenon, as well as wearable, everyday options; a half and half mix ensuring there’s something for everyone.
Davy also recently shared with InStyle what each Euphoria character’s signature makeup product is.
Davy’s pick for Rue, the main character and makeup minimalist of the cast, is highlighter. I recommend the Watt’s Up! Cream Highlighter from Benefit Cosmetics.
For Jules, the confident, expressive new kid on the block who personifies femininity, Davy’s pick is eye paints. Try these Vivid Brights Creme Colors from NYX.
For queen bee cheerleader and former pageant girl, Maddy, who is popular and confident with makeup always on point, Davy’s pick is a long-lasting very black eyeliner. I love this Waterproof Liquid Liner from Maybelline.
Best friend to Maddy, Cassie is a sweet and sentimental hopeless romantic. Davy’s pick for Cassie is shimmer powder. Try this Fairy Bomb Shimmer Powder from Fenty Beauty.
Kat is the shy girl turned vixen who is in the throes of her sexual awakening, causing her to gain confidence and become more comfortable in her own skin. Davy’s pick for Kat is bold, smoky, jewel-toned eyeshadows. Try the gemstone Obsessions Eyeshadow Palette from Huda Beauty to recreate these looks.
Childhood best friend to Rue and younger sister to Cassie, Lexi is the level-headed responsible girl of the group who is typically less glammed, but almost always wears a bold lip. Davy’s pick for Lexi is a classic red lipstick. Try this Matte Lipstick from MAC in Ruby Woo.
For questions, concerns, or article ideas, feel free to reach out to our eCosmetics Beauty Editor directly at beauty@ecosmetics.com
