'The Sex Lives of College Girls' star Reneé Rapp talks Leighton's evolution this season and choosing to be a good friend: 'She's a really caring person'

• "The Sex Lives of College Girls" star Reneé Rapp spoke to Insider about Leighton's evolution and growth.
• The actor said that she loves that her character is "a really caring person."

"The Sex Lives of College Girls" star Reneé Rapp said that her character Leighton Murray's evolution on season two shows that she's genuinely a good friend to those in her inner circle.

"What I love about Leighton is she is, I think, a really caring person," Rapp told Insider in a recent interview ahead of the season two premiere on HBO Max. "She cares a lot. I think that another coping thing is just acting like everything's cool and acting like everything's good. "

The actress continued: "But no matter really what she goes through she's always gonna be there for somebody when they need it. And I think that's really special."

Leighton's journey during season one showed the Essex College freshman wrestling with her closeted sexuality because she doesn't like the concept of coming out and having it define her. In the season one finale, during a heartfelt scene, she revealed to her suitemate Kimberly Finkle (Pauline Chalamet) that she's gay.

Leighton was closeted and somewhat aloof to her suitemates in season one. But this time around, she's more confident and a dedicated friend.

When Leighton returns to Essex after Thanksgiving break in the season two premiere, she tells her two other suitemates, Bela Malhotra (Amrit Kaur) and Whitney Chase (Alyah Chanelle Scott), that she's gay.

As season two progresses, Leighton learns how to navigate her status as a popular queer girl on campus. This includes hooking up with girls that she meets on dating apps and in person.

Despite her own challenges — like getting chlamydia and trying to earn a spot in the Kappa sorority — she makes time to be there for her friends, specifically helping Kimberly administer hormone injections and accompanying her to the hospital for a medical procedure to sell her eggs.

Rapp said that Leighton's growth this season is due in part to the character accepting herself and becoming more comfortable with her identity.

"She could take this opportunity to really feed into, 'OK, I'm gonna act like a bitch and this is what I'm gonna do,'" Rapp said. "And instead, she chooses to be a good friend, which is a really good choice to look up to her for and something I really love about her character and the depths of which she really fucking cares about people and the people around her."

The first six episodes of season two of "The Sex Lives of College Girls" are streaming on HBO Max. The 10-episode season continues with two new episodes weekly leading up to the season finale on December 15.