Rapid fame can be a double-edged sword, especially for a young actor. Australian star Jacob Elordi experienced this firsthand after his breakout role in Netflix’s The Kissing Booth in 2018, followed by a critically acclaimed turn on HBO’s Euphoria, which premiered in 2019. In a candid conversation with GQ, the 25-year-old reflected on the challenges of teen stardom, including the paranoia and personal sacrifices that come with being thrust into the spotlight.
Overnight Fame Was Overwhelming
Elordi’s rise to fame was literally instantaneous. The Kissing Booth dropped on Netflix at midnight, and by the next morning, he had gained four million Instagram followers. “I had to go through and delete my high school pictures because that was the Instagram that I used for my life,” he explained, highlighting how dramatically his reality had shifted overnight. “I wish people could understand how drastic that change was.”
Nearly Quitting Acting
The actor admitted that the sudden fame made him question his path entirely. “I considered quitting acting after The Kissing Booth, which might sound sensitive and dramatic, but I am sensitive and I’m very dramatic,” Elordi shared. He felt disconnected from himself and hated becoming a public character rather than living as his authentic self. Although he ultimately stayed in the industry, the discomfort with fame hasn’t faded.
Paranoia Sets In
Elordi described the first time paparazzi photographed him as deeply unsettling. “It felt like I was a poster. Like I was a billboard. It felt like it was for sale. Then my brain went through the [expletive] wringer,” he said. The constant attention warped his perspective and created what he called a “very paranoid way of living.”
Fear of Losing Himself
The actor is concerned that the demands of celebrity are changing him at a fundamental level. “The fear is that going on a walk in Byron Bay, at my home, maybe one day that won’t hold the same value to me, because I’ve sanded down all my edges,” he reflected. Elordi worries that maintaining a public persona—always graceful, always measured—could erode the genuine, spontaneous parts of himself. “I still want to be in touch with my younger self, which is everything that I am,” he added.
Learning From Others
Elordi has also looked to those around him for guidance. In a 2021 interview with Men’s Health, he cited his then-girlfriend Kaia Gerber, daughter of supermodel Cindy Crawford, as an example of someone who manages public attention with poise. “She handles herself wonderfully publicly,” he said. “I’ve learned so much from her about how to handle it, how to deal with it, and just kind of be whatever about it.”
Elordi’s reflections reveal the hidden pressures behind teen stardom—the balancing act between personal life and public persona, and the challenge of staying grounded while fame accelerates at lightning speed. “I just want to be a part of the world,” he said. “I want to have a life. I want to have the same 80-, 85-year—more or less—experience that everyone has. I don’t want to miss anything by sitting on some overly sour pile of candy.”
He’s navigating fame with care, determined to protect his sense of self while still embracing the opportunities that come with being a household name.
