When Euphoria first premiered on HBO in 2019, the entertainment landscape looked nothing like it does today. Jacob Elordi and Sydney Sweeney were largely unknown quantities. There was genuine curiosity about whether Zendaya, fresh off Marvel’s family friendly Spider Man franchise, could carry something so raw and emotionally demanding. Beloved cast members Eric Dane and Angus Cloud were both very much alive. And audiences were still wrapping their heads around rapper Drake’s name appearing in the executive producer credits.
That first season daring, unnerving and achingly relevant in its portrayal of troubled teenagers earned enormous critical acclaim. Over the course of its first two seasons, the show collected nine Primetime Emmy Awards, including two for Zendaya’s portrayal of Rue Bennett, the show’s emotionally fractured lead.
Then came the long wait. And everything changed.
Four years, countless complications
Season 2 aired in 2022, and what followed was years of turbulence behind the scenes. Production was delayed by the dual writers’ and actors’ strikes of 2023. Reports circulated of creative tensions, extensive rewrites and on-set friction. The show that had felt so urgent, so of-the-moment, was suddenly struggling to find its footing in a rapidly shifting pop culture moment.
Now, the third and final season created by Sam Levinson arrives on Sunday, and it does so carrying the weight of everything that has happened in the years between.
The story has grown up
The show itself has aged significantly, both literally and thematically. Where Euphoria originally followed a group of childhood friends navigating love, addiction and trauma through high school, Season 3 picks up five years later. Rue, Nate and Cassie played by Zendaya, Elordi and Sweeney respectively are now firmly adults, grappling with questions of faith and redemption. The season also stars Colman Domingo, Alexa Demie, Hunter Schafer and Maude Apatow.
Stars who became too big for the room
Perhaps the most striking shift is what has happened to the cast off screen. Elordi returns as a newly minted Oscar nominee, recognized by Hollywood’s most prestigious body for his performance in Guillermo Del Toro’s Frankenstein. Sweeney has become a mainstream star through high-profile projects including White Lotus, Anyone But You and last December’s The Housemaid, which is already set for a sequel. She has also found herself at the center of broader cultural conversations, including a widely discussed jeans advertisement last year.
Zendaya, meanwhile, has ascended to a different tier entirely. Beyond her continued presence in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Oscar winning Dune franchise, she is currently in theaters opposite Robert Pattinson in The Drama. She is also attached to The Odyssey and the third and final Dune installment, before returning to Marvel in Spider Man: Brand New Day this fall. The actress who once generated buzz simply for taking a gritty TV role is now one of the most bankable stars in Hollywood.
A new sound, and a painful absence
Season 3 is also introducing a new sonic identity. British artist Labrinth, who composed the music for the show’s first two seasons and gave Euphoria much of its distinctively moody, melodic texture, has been replaced for the season premiere by prolific Hollywood film composer Hans Zimmer a significant creative departure.
More painfully, the season arrives in the shadow of real loss. Angus Cloud, who played warmhearted drug dealer Fezco in Seasons 1 and 2, died at 25 in 2023 following an accidental overdose. Eric Dane, who portrayed Nate’s repressed father Cal Jacobs, died in February after a battle with ALS though not before filming scenes for this final season.
In a quiet acknowledgment of Cloud’s death, Fezco is confirmed alive in Season 3, with Rue and Lexi played by Apatow referencing his character being in prison during the season’s opening episode.
Whether the show can still resonate after so much time and change remains the central question heading into this finale.
