'Euphoria' star Barbie Ferreira calls out 'backhanded compliments' she gets about her body

• "Euphoria" star Barbie Ferreira recently discussed body image in an interview with Who What Wear.
• She said she feels extra pressure to be "this person who 'loves themselves'" because of her body.

Barbie Ferreira recently opened up about the trappings of body positivity and the pressure to be "this person who 'loves themselves.'"

During an interview with Who What Wear for its February cover story, the 25-year-old actor said people often assume she is confident, simply because she exists publicly in a plus-size body.

"It's so funny that people just assume that. What — did I say that? I never said that. You guys just say that. You posted that on me," she explained.

"It's not radical for me to be wearing a crop top," Ferreira added, describing those comments as "backhanded compliments."

Ferreira has been in the public eye since age 16, when her social media popularity — particularly on the photo-heavy blog platform Tumblr — led to several high-profile American Apparel campaigns. She went on to model for brands like Aerie and Adidas before landing her breakout role on HBO's gritty teen drama "Euphoria."

Ferreira stars as Kat Hernandez, a high schooler who struggles with body image. In season one, Kat attempts to rebrand as a "a fat girl who doesn't give a fuck," but in season two, finds that persona more unattainable than ever.

"I think bigger bodies are not as 'trendy' as they used to be, which is really sad to me," Ferreira told Who What Wear. "But it's more of a conversation of the fact that we all struggle with self-love, and I don't think any young person has really figured it out yet."

"She's trying to figure out her way into her sexuality and her 'confidence,'" she also said of her character. "I think it was a façade that even she didn't really believe in."

Ferreira explained that some of Kat's arc was inspired by her own recent experiences.

"I had a lot of things come up emotionally because of the pandemic, and putting some of that into this season was therapeutic for me," she said.

"I hope other people [watching] can also feel the same way and release the pressure of being perfect and happy all the time," she added. "Because that just doesn't exist."