Diego Peralta
All good things must come to an end. Euphoria entertained people from all ages since 2019, until it was time for Rue’s (Zendaya) story to reach its tragic conclusion. The third installment of the series featured an impeccable antagonist in the form of Alamo Brown (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), a dangerous criminal who quickly became a negative influence over the protagonist’s life.
Awards Radar had the opportunity to interview Adewale. The soft-spoken actor couldn’t be more different from the intimidating antagonist he brought to life in the HBO smash hit. The talented, intelligent Adewale thoroughly discussed the factors that came together in order for him to craft Alamo Brown’s personality.
Adewale is aware of the impact Alamo had over the course of Euphoria’s final season. The cowboy led the protagonist of the series to her demise, a fact that the audience will never forget: “It’s sweet for the audience. It’s a character they love to hate. He has inspired some intense feelings in them. (Alamo Brown) is someone they love to hate. He’s responsible for the demise of their beloved Rue.”
During other conversations the actor had with the press, Adewale commented that starting his journey in Euphoria during the final season of the series made him feel as an “outsider”, when taking into account that the main cast of the HBO juggernaut was firmly established. However, those feelings changed once the performer saw the public’s reaction to the character, understanding that Alamo’s impact was bigger than anyone could have predicted: “I feel like I was embraced as a character, because he’s hated. He definitely was during the finale when it was revealed that he’s responsible for Rue’s death. I got rid of all the angst related to feeling like an outsider then. (…) Alamo Brown is the brainchild of Sam Levinson. (Some members of the audience) hate themselves for loving Alamo, as well.”
Euphoria was a series that started out as a teen drama that took place around high school dynamics. The final season allowed the show to grow into a deeper story, where these characters become adults who have to deal with the consequences of their actions. Adewale knows that the audience felt the major shift in tone since the season started, but he doesn’t believe that this transition affected the show negatively: “From what I observed, this wasn’t something that was suddenly forced upon the cast. I think this was in development for a number of years, with Sam and the original cast. I think they were privy with the changes that were going to occur. Everybody was on board with it, and they were very professional about it.”
Alamo Brown has an impeccable sense of style. Adewale shared how the villain’s iconic look came to be: “I have to confess this is mostly Natasha Newman-Thomas (the award-winning costume designer who also worked on HBO’s I Love L.A. and The Idol). Brilliant work. She has such a great aesthetic, as does Sam Levinson. He is very stylish, and he knows what he wants for his characters. Both of them allowed me to have my own input. We went through various iterations of the outfits. And then we all agreed (on the character’s style) through this flamboyant outfits. The beard and the costume represented everything we wanted out of the character. He was very gritty. There was a very nice juxtaposition between his costume, that was kind of cowboy chic, and his persona. They really allowed me to have an input, but I do need to give credit to Natasha Newman-Thomas for that.”
An unexpected connection that arrived thanks to the final season of Euphoria was the steamy business relationship between Alamo Brown and Maddy Perez (Alexa Demie). The characters weren’t even supposed to cross paths within the story of the series, until Rue introduced her high school friend to the criminal menace who was ruining her life.
Adewale was proud to speak about the connection between Alamo and Maddy, having nothing but praise for his co-star: “It’s interesting because we didn’t really discuss too much, myself and Sam, about Maddy’s influence. The wonderful thing about working with Sam is that it’s very fluid. We just discovered our chemistry and our personalities in the scenes. What we did see, which was instant, was that there was an organic chemistry between myself and the wonderful Alexa Demie. Sam played with that in the scenes. She’s very witty, she’s quite humorous, as am I. It gave the scenes a different flavor. It was also evident that Maddy was bringing out a different side of Alamo out. He was more flirtatious, emotional, and even vulnerable at times. He was smitten with her, like I said, we didn’t discuss too much. We just got into the scenes. It worked seamlessly. It allowed the chemistry between the actors to bring it to life.”
Alamo comes from a very troubled family. The show took some time to bring attention to the relationship between the villain and his mother. Adewale confirms that this bond betrayal between mother and son is what turned Alamo into the unpredictable manipulator depicted during his adulthood: “100%, there is. As you saw in the backstory, played by the lovely Danielle Deadwyler, his mother (was a big influence). He was quite a sensitive child, and someone who was looking for family and love. He was impressed by his new stepfather, and he really wanted for stability, he yearned for that. When the mother corrupted his illusion of this utopian family, I think it broke his heart, and it somewhat traumatized him. It was such a painful moment for him. He never really got over it. I think he transferred that trauma onto the women in his life. He was never going to allow another woman to betray or outsmart him. It affected all of his relationships. With Rue, the suspicion and the distrust. And then the ultimate sadistic retribution when he found out he betrayed him with Laurie. And as you said, with Maddy.”
The final season of Euphoria is now available for streaming on HBO Max. This interview was edited for length and clarity purposes.
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