Jacob Elordi Wanted His 'Kissing Booth' Character to Smoke Onscreen, Be More 'Bad Boy'

Mar. 15, 2025

Photo: Eli Russell Linnetz/GQ

Jacob Elordiproved he is not afraid to go great lengths to portray a role as realistically as possible – even if that means standing up to his bosses.

Elordi, who starred inNetflix’sThe Kissing Booth, a 2018 teenage romantic comedy, revealed he wanted his character, Noah Flynn, to smoke, as Flynn does in Beth Reekles' 2012 novel, which the trilogy of Netflix films are based off.

“I remember saying, ‘He smokes in the book. I need to smoke. He needs to have cigarettes. He’s a bad boy,” Elordi toldGQ. But his request was shut down.

“I was like, ‘This is bulls—!’ I remember going to war for it,” Elordi continued. “I was like, ‘Are we lying to the f—ing millions of 14-year-olds out there? This guy smokes nicotine. It says here on page four – look!’ I imagine people were just like, ‘Jesus f—ing Christ. Is this guy serious?'”

Marcos Cruz/Netflix

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

In addition to talking about his experience on the set ofThe Kissing Booth, Elordi also opened up about starring as Nate Jacobs inEuphoria.

Eli Russell Linnetz/GQ

“For me, working on that set is an absolute treat,” Elordi toldGQ. “When I’m working with Sam [director Sam Levinson], I’m in the trenches with him, and I trust him, and I work myself to the bone for him. I think I’ve read people saying, ‘Look, that’s a bad image to set, you shouldn’t have to work yourself to the bone for art.’ F— that. I enjoy it.”

Elordi added that a main reason the HBO series has done so well is because of how much energy goes into shooting and capturing the right emotions.

“What everyone’s seeing on television, the shots that people are talking about, the feelings that they get, the conversation that’s around the show, that’s because certain shots take 30-something takes,” he revealed.

source: people.com