Camila Morrone Isn't Ready to Say Goodbye to Daisy Jones & the Six Yet
Camila Morrone is feeling a little emotional. It’s the Monday before the final two episodes of Daisy Jones & the Six air on Prime Video, and while she’s excited for fans to experience the beautiful (and tear-inducing) close of the series, it also means the incredible joyride she’s been on for the better part of three years is coming to an end. Understandably, she’s not ready to let go just yet. "It feels like it’s over so fast,” Morrone tells me over Zoom. "I booked this in 2019. I sat on this and waited for it and hoped and dreamed and envisioned what it would be, and then from one day to another, this thing that is secret and private and yours is out in the world.”
Morrone, sitting at her dining table fresh-faced and effortless in a loose white tee, is reaching the tail end of a whirlwind press tour, which included multiple photo shoots (our own taking place the Friday before this interview) and stops in London, Los Angeles, and New York. She’s still buzzing from the excitement surrounding the limited series, so I ask her to take me back to the beginning, where it all began.
Fresh off her breakout role in the indie film Mickey and the Bear, Morrone got a call from her best friend, who just so happens to represent Riley Keough, to tell her about a new book-to-series adaptation called Daisy Jones & the Six about the rise and fall of a fictional rock band set in 1970s Los Angeles. Keough had just booked the lead role, but there was another character she thought Morrone would be perfect for. Coincidentally, her name was also Camila, and she’s the heart of the story. Morrone proceeded to devour the Taylor Jenkins Reid book on which the series is based and swiftly impressed the producers, showrunners, and Keough to land the part.
At the time, Morrone was quite selective with what she wanted to do next, but Daisy Jones & the Six ticked all of her boxes. Quality content and script? Check! A female-empowered story backed by Reese Witherspoon and Hello Sunshine? Check, check! Fantastic cast? Check! And most importantly, a strong, inspirational character? Check! "Between all of those factors, it was a given for me that this was something that I would love to do,” she says. "And the cherry on top is it was set in 1970s L.A. I was born and raised in L.A. The costumes, the set design, the cars, the music, the history—it was just a yes a million times over for me.”
Camila Dunne—an aspiring photographer and the wife of Daisy Jones & the Six frontman Billy Dunne—is, not surprisingly, a fan favorite. She plays an integral role in the band’s early success and is the glue that holds the group together. But the entry point for Morrone was Camila’s coming-of-age story. We see a young woman going from living with her parents to following a man across the country to help him pursue his music dreams and then becoming a mother and a wife as well as the evolution of her marriage. "I’m also a young woman in my 20s and figuring it out in real time,” Morrone says. "A feeling I kept coming back to was discovery and self-discovery and what it meant for Camila and what it means to me.”
Morrone worked closely with the writers and showrunners to make sure Camila had a strong voice in the series. "She’s no wallflower—she’s nobody’s fool,” she adds. "For me, it was really important to not do a sob story of the cheated-on wife, but [I wanted to] flip that on its head and make her the driving force of that story.” The response to the 25-year-old’s portrayal of Camila has been overwhelmingly positive, and the actress admits it’s been a good feeling to see fan reactions to the character on-screen.
But it’s not just Camila’s gentle-yet-fiery nature that has people talking. She also happens to have arguably some of the show’s best costumes. Her Bianca Jagger–inspired cheetah-print look from episode eight immediately comes to mind. Morrone says she was very hands-on when it came to Camila’s wardrobe, working closely with costume designer Denise Wingate on forming the character’s sartorial narrative. "We were both so aligned on everything that we envisioned for this character,” she says. The women on their vision boards? A lot of Ali MacGraw for Camila’s earlier years, then Brigitte Bardot from the ’70s, Jagger, Lauren Hutton, and a little Jane Fonda too. "Denise and I just agreed on every single look. The second we would try something on, we would nix it if it didn’t work, and we’d both look at each other and say, ‘Next!’ We were just very cutthroat and knew exactly what we wanted,” she adds.
Wingate more than delivered on the show’s costumes with over 1500 wardrobe changes. "The outfits in the show are so fun, and everyone has such a different style,” Morrone says. "I remember being on set and looking at Riley and Suki and being like, ‘Oh, I want your clothes! And they were like, ‘We want your clothes!’”
The bond Morrone developed with co-stars Keough and Suki Waterhouse is unmatched. The three have been almost inseparable since beginning press for Daisy Jones back in February, with Waterhouse instigating the trio’s most recent TikTok shenanigans. "The three of us, it just feels like family,” Morrone says with a big smile. "It’s one of those things where we’ve all been on this experience together for three years. We’ve all seen each other cry, we’ve all seen each other have meltdowns, we’ve all seen each other in our most glamorous moments and in our non-glamorous moments, and we’ve all really confided in each other in a really beautiful way. So that’s like family to me now.”
I’m starting to understand why she’s having a tough time saying goodbye.
But there's also much to look forward to for Morrone, who has two more buzzy projects circling this year. There’s the crime romance Marmalade, in which she stars opposite Joe Keery (Strangers Things), about two Texas bank robbers. "We created this beautiful Tim Burton–esque film that is just a feast for the eyes,” she shares. "The pacing and speed of it is totally wild and insane, and I would just say it’s a roller coaster.” And then there’s Gonzo Girl, Patricia Arquette’s directorial debut. Set in the ’90s, the film follows Morrone as Alley Russo, a struggling writer who takes a job as an assistant to a novelist reminiscent of Hunter S. Thompson.
Even with a major year, the hustle of a rising actor in Hollywood is relentless. Morrone describes it as an adrenaline thrill of a project coming out and then quickly having to get back into the marathon of finding your next job. But Morrone admits she is picky when it comes to finding the right next move. She counts herself lucky to have only done projects that she really loves and is really proud of. The through line continues to be female-centered coming-of-age stories and the fact that they have all been things she was terrified to do. "If I see something that is horribly, torturously scary and daunting to do, I’m like, ‘Sign me up for that one!’” she laughs. Right now, Morrone is more than happy to wait patiently for the right story and character to come along and scare her. After all, she’s still basking in the afterglow of Daisy Jones & the Six—and rightfully so!
Catch up on Daisy Jones & the Six, now streaming on Prime Video.
Photographer: Bryan Carr
Stylist: Lauren Eggertsen
Hairstylist: Jenny Cho
Hair Assistant: Kelsey Hellenbrand
Makeup Artist: Mary Phillips
Makeup Assistant: Lauren Esposito
Manicurist: Sarah Chue
Art Director: Amy Armani
Entertainment Director: Jessica Baker
Jessica Baker is Who What Wear’s Executive Director, Entertainment, where she ideates, books, writes, and edits celebrity and entertainment features.
-
"Sets Are Such Weird Places": Aya Cash on the Meta Experience of Filming HBO's The Franchise
Plus, how her personal love of fashion influenced her character's style.
By Jessica Baker
-
Heretic's Chloe East on Taco Bell, Missionaries, and Her Ever-Evolving Beliefs
An exclusive interview with the rising actress.
By Jessica Baker
-
Allow Madison Bailey to Reintroduce Herself
Outer Banks sun, musician rising.
By Ana Escalante
-
'90s Rom-Coms and Chic Suits—Camille Charrière's New Fashion Collab Is a Must-See
It might be my favorite collab of 2024.
By Ana Escalante
-
The 7 TV and Film Performances We Can't Stop Talking About This Fall
Peak entertainment season has arrived!
By Jessica Baker
-
Saturday Night's Ella Hunt on Transforming Into Comedy Legend Gilda Radner
"It's spirited hair."
By Jessica Baker
-
"You Can't Play Power—You Have to Be Power": Ari Graynor on the Monsters Role of a Lifetime
Award season, here she comes.
By Jessica Baker
-
Lolly Adefope Strikes Comedy Gold Again in The Franchise
God, we love this woman.
By Jessica Baker