Jacob Elordi recently opened up about one of the most challenging experiences of his acting career. The Euphoria star revealed that he spent two full days locked inside a coffin with a real snake while filming his character Nate Jacobs’ death scene in the show’s final season.
The 29-year-old actor shared the story during a July 20 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live! The episode was guest-hosted by his Euphoria co-star Colman Domingo. Elordi did not hold back when describing what it was like to film the intense sequence.
“I Think Sam Brought Me Back to Torture Me”
Elordi joked that series creator Sam Levinson had a specific reason for bringing his character back for the final season. He said Levinson wanted to make him suffer.
“I think Sam brought me back to torture me. It was like, six weeks of me just getting beat by a seven-foot guy. I was just running the whole time.”
The final season of Euphoria showed Nate Jacobs facing serious consequences for his past actions. His character got involved in a failed real estate deal that put him in debt to dangerous people. Episode after episode, Nate got beaten up by a loan shark and his henchmen.
Locked in a Coffin for Two Days Straight
The most difficult part came when it was time to film Nate’s death scene. In the show, Nate gets buried alive inside a coffin. A rattlesnake then enters through a breathing tube and bites him.
Elordi described the filming process in detail.
“I got locked in a coffin for two days straight with prosthetics and a fake tongue, and I couldn’t see out of my eyes. And then Sam put snakes into the coffin.”
The actor wore heavy makeup and prosthetics that made it hard to see anything around him. He also had a fake tongue in his mouth to make the scene look more convincing. The combination of being unable to see and being trapped in a small space made the experience unforgettable.
The Snake Was Not the Scariest Part
Despite the terrifying setup, Elordi said the snake turned out to be the least frightening part of the experience. The production team used a boa constrictor to play the role of the deadly rattlesnake. They attached a fake rattler to the end of the snake’s tail to make it look more threatening.
Elordi had nothing but kind words for his reptile co-star.
“He had a very nice personality. He was very docile and very sleepy. I don’t think he’d had a lot of sun. So I was kind of nudging him, trying to get him to get active and do the scene, because he was meant to be threatening. But he was like a little dog. He just kept curling up at my feet.”
The snake was so calm that Elordi had to wake it up to get it to move for the scene. He described the reptile as “cuddly” and “nice” during earlier interviews about the same scene.
“He’d drop down the tube and then he’d sort of slither down, and then he’d find a little warm spot.”
Fans Got What They Asked For
Elordi also addressed the audience’s reaction to his character’s death. Fans had spent years calling for Nate Jacobs to be killed off. When Domingo brought up the death scene, the studio audience let out a sad “aww”.
Elordi responded with humor.
“Thanks. Finally, after eight years of all of you saying, ‘Fk Nate, kill Nate, Nate’s a piece of sh‘ — yeah, I read your tweets — now you’re sad.”
The actor acknowledged that he knew exactly what fans had been saying about his character online throughout the show’s run.
The Show Changed His Life Completely
Elordi reflected on what Euphoria meant for his career. He said the series had a massive impact on his life and opened doors for him in Hollywood.
“I don’t know if I’ll ever fathom the sort of size of that show and what it did for me. I mean, we’re in movies now! Like, you’re leading Spielberg movies and I’m working with Ridley Scott. It’s crazy.”
The actor’s career has grown significantly since Euphoria first aired in 2019. He received an Oscar nomination for his role in Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein. He also starred opposite Margot Robbie in Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights.
Elordi’s next big project is Ridley Scott’s The Dog Stars, which is scheduled to premiere on August 28.
The Real Snake Was a Boa Constrictor
The production team used a real snake for the scene, but it was not a rattlesnake. Real rattlesnakes were used for footage showing the snake before it enters Nate’s grave. For the actual coffin scene, the team used a non-venomous boa constrictor. Rattle sounds were added later in post-production to make the scene more intense.
The boa constrictor was fitted with a fake rattler for close-up shots. Despite the rattling sounds on set, Elordi said the experience was not as scary as it looked on screen.
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Sam Levinson Defended the Gruesome Death
Sam Levinson, the creator of Euphoria, previously explained why he wrote such a brutal death for Nate’s character.
“There’s this kind of funny thing where I know what the audience wants in terms of justice or karma. And with that in mind, I always think, ‘Well, how can I give it to them? How can I give them what they want, but make it so horrific and anxiety-inducing that by the time it happens, the audience isn’t so sure they wanted it?’”
Levinson also gave “enormous credit” to Elordi for agreeing to film the scene with a real snake.
Euphoria has now ended after three seasons. The show starred Zendaya, Sydney Sweeney, Hunter Schafer, and Barbie Ferreira alongside Elordi. There was a long wait for fans between Season 2 and Season 3.
Despite the challenges, Elordi said he actually enjoyed filming the intense scenes.
“You don’t have any lines. So you just have to go like, ‘Ahhhhhh!’ That’s all you gotta do. It’s great.”
The actor also revealed some of his personal fears during the interview. He said he is afraid of the dark, dying, and dish water. He explained that lukewarm dish water with leftover food bits in it makes him uncomfortable.
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