“Stranger Things” Star Priah Ferguson On Sisterhood And Style
‘Stranger Things’ Star Priah Ferguson On Sisterhood, Style, And Authenticity
- Ferguson maintains a small, supportive friend circle to guide her decision-making.
- She experiments with diverse hairstyles and minimal makeup to express her evolving identity.
- Ferguson seeks grounded, relatable stories that reflect her real-life experiences.
Stranger Things has come to an end, and Eleven is on to a new journey, leaving breakout star Priah Ferguson prepared to transition with grace.
The actress who balanced finishing high school with helping the Hawkins teens avoid global destruction is maturing professionally and personally. She chatted with HelloBeautiful about friendship, focus, and her next steps after graduating from the Upside Down.
On Keeping A Small Close Circle
She set intentions during a vision board party she hosted recently. No mind-altering pie was served, but her creative itch was scratched. “I’m very big into aesthetics. I like everything to feel a certain way, look a certain way. I love a great vibe, so I like interior design.”
Connection is a major part of her life, but there’s no room for monitoring spirits in her crew, just like minds. “I think sisterhood is important, not just through family, but [in] friendship as well,” she continues. “All of my friends, we all kind of have go-getter mindsets, which is why this vision board party was so much fun. I don’t have many friends. Honestly, I have a close three or four people, but that’s enough for me.”
With four million Instagram followers, she easily could have outsourced party prep to an eager event-planning upstart, but she wanted to serve her squad. “I decorated everything by myself,” she said.
Hosting lets her express who she is off-camera. She loves to cook and has the ability to go from rocking Roger Vivier shoes on the red carpet to cheffing up fresh asparagus, lamb chops, and macaroni and cheese in a heartbeat.
On Seeking Life Advice
Social media turns to iconic sitcom characters for their board of directors, but Ferguson keeps in the family. “I ask my little sister a lot for her opinion because I know it’s going to be the truth. I also ask my mom, I ask my friends,” she says. “I’m a very indecisive person,” she explains. Her support system is helping her work through that. “Especially when it comes down to speaking up for myself.”
Coming into her own has helped her be more vocal.
“I feel as I’m getting older, I’m finding I’m getting more comfortable, finding my voice and speaking up for myself,” she says. Erica has no problem with vocalization, and she’s a strong representation of Black girls in STEM. “Erica was the voice of reason, and she kind of used her humor as a tool of agency,” said Ferguson.
“I think that she represents a lot of little sisters, really well,” she adds. “She’s also very, very smart as well. I mean, she was literally building the whole canon in the last episode.”
On Experimenting With Personal Style
Style is one of the ways Ferguson expresses her agency. She jumps between updos, side-parts, slick buns, honeyed bobs, and ponytails. Her chameleonic energy is more subtle than Erica’s clapbacks, but sends a strong message about who she is becoming all the same. The starlet is a confident risk taker, who doesn’t hop on trends unless they speak to her.
Her most famous character might be permanently stuck in the Purple Rain era, but the actress is comfortable switching up her looks. She is on the verge of putting in colorful extensions as she speaks. “I’m always changing my hair,” she says. “I’m doing something fun and trying out pink.
She shared some of her beauty go-tos, including keeping it light. “I love a great water line eyeliner moment. That’s one of my favorite things as well and honestly, some people might think I’m crazy, but I do not wear a foundation at all,” she reveals. “I’m not a big foundation girl.”
“I just kind of do concealer,” she adds.
She loves a light structured eyebrow. “My brows are something that I always get compliments on. So I just put a little brow gel on. I do not fill in my brows,” she continues.
On Learning From Veterans And Moving Forward
Her character, Erica Sinclair, might be known for dishing out snappy one-liners, but Ferguson is much calmer.
Ferguson has been cast along some Hollywood heavyweights in the upcoming Basquiat biopic Samo Lives. The buzzy project didn’t place pressure on the young performer. She went into the audition resolved to accept the outcome. She told herself “If it’s meant to be, it’s meant to be,” she says.
It was meant to be. She was added to the cast list alongside Jeffrey Wright and Kelvin Harrison.
“I was in a room with great actors, so I learned a lot from them,” she said.
She has not ruled out a turn as a comic book feline. “I am a fan of Cat Woman,” she says. But she wants to tell relatable stories, too.
Her commitment to authentic experiences helped her understand why Stranger Things was so well-received. “Stranger Things connected to a lot of different people,” she says. “Many people saw themselves in that show, especially with Erica.”
She knows what direction she wants to go in next, “I would love to do like a coming of age story,” says Ferguson. “Those are my favorite books to read.”
Grounded stories draw her in.
“I like stuff that’s very authentic and real, something that I can relate to. And I went to public school, so I know what real looks like. I had conversations every day with real people.”
They might have different demeanors, but Ferguson is just as interested in understanding how things work as her character. “I am really into cosmetic science and fragrance,” she says. She plans on continuing her education while pursuing the next stage in her career and speaks confidently about her coming successes in both arenas.
“I’m gonna balance both,” she says. “Acting is my future.”
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