Euphoria is undoubtedly one of the biggest shows on TV, creating the type of fan craze that HBO has consistently delivered since The Sopranos, Sex and the City, and Game of Thrones.
Only in its second season, the horny teen drama has ramped up the star wattage of its leading ladies, earning Zendaya her first Emmy for playing the drug-addicted, self-destructive teenager Rue. The show has also helped transform Sydney Sweeney into the new Hollywood “It Girl,” as Maude Apatow, Hunter Schafer, Alexa Demie, and Barbie Ferreira have all shared their well-earned turns in the spotlight.
The fervor around the show intensified and its popularity swelled after production was halted for a year due to the pandemic. The rollout of HBO Max supplied the show with 67 million global subscribers by summer 2021; and so, when the new season finally premiered in January, around 13.1 million pairs of eyeballs were glued to what the delinquent high schoolers were up to over its first three episodes, crushing Season 1’s average of 6.6 million viewers. It’s been such a ratings smash that HBO’s already announced it will be renewing the Sam Levinson series for a third season.
But while buzz and fan investment in a show is always welcomed and a clear sign of success, something about Euphoria feels different this season, and not in a way HBO necessarily may have liked.
During this past season, viewers have morphed from loyal watchers into a cult-like fandom who analyze every second of the show, searching for clues hidden in plain sight—think Yellowjackets-level conspiracy theories. (They wouldn’t be entirely wrong to keep their eyes peeled for subtle messages, as head makeup artist Doniella Davy regularly shares behind-the-scenes looks at the meticulous planning that goes into each look and explains how it bleeds into a character’s storyline for that episode.)
A house party brings the ladies together in Euphoria Season 2
HBOSome of the most far-sketched theories include: that Rue has been dead all along; that fellow teen addict Elliot (Dominic Fike) is a figment of Rue’s imagination; and kiddo drug dealer Ashtray (Javon Walton) is secretly the mysterious third brother of Nate Jacobs (Jacob Elordi), who is seen in a happy family portrait of America’s most dysfunctional family, but never mentioned.
One insider couldn’t help themselves and leaked an extensive play-by-play of every episode ahead of the finale—plot points that have so far shaped up to be fairly accurate. (Screenshots of the leaks posted to Reddit and Twitter have been taken down, with the sites noting a third party flagged the material for copyright violation.)
The messy characters and show’s overall mayhem (not to mention the sometimes gratuitous nudity) have been amped up this season, which some view as creator and director Levinson’s tendency to favor chaos and admittedly gorgeous shots over meaningful character or plot development.
It’s sparked frustration in devoted fans, many of whom have turned on Levinson, griping about his screenwriting prowess and complaining about how he leaves certain storylines in the dust so he can prioritize a few of his favorite characters.
Adding fuel to the fire is a persistent rumor about tensions between some cast members and Levinson—specifically Ferreira, who allegedly butted heads with Levinson over some elements of the direction of her character.
The talks are said to have gone south, with Ferreira allegedly walking off set and Levinson cutting back her screen time. These strains were also referenced by the Euphoria leaker, who claimed that HBO wasn’t all that pleased with the direction the season had headed.
The claim seems to have some merit, as Ferreira’s fan-favorite character Kat Hernandez has taken a backseat so far this season after an impressive first season, where Kat became a symbol of body positivity during her journey of self-discovery leading her to a sexual awakening, including writing erotic fanfic on Tumblr and becoming a camgirl. By the end of the season, Kat is comfortable in her own skin and develops a budding romance with Ethan (Austin Abrams), the earnest boy-next-door-type, who accepts her as she is.
But fans looking for a glimmer of hope in Euphoria’s dark world were sorely disappointed this season.
Instead, Kat’s screen time has been largely scaled back as she flails about in her relationship with Ethan, and her character’s transmogrified into a vindictive, uncaring narcissist.
In a recent The Cut article featuring the show’s leading women, the alleged rift is pointedly highlighted, along with the anecdote that Ferreira skipped out on the season premiere, which the majority of her co-stars attended.
Still, Ferreira remained tight-lipped. “Kat’s journey this season is a little more internal and a little mysterious to the audience,” she offered. “She is secretly going through a lot of existential crises. She loses her marbles a little bit—just like everyone else in this season. The theme is everyone’s gone a little crazy.”
In another feature for Who What Wear, Ferreira is even more guarded about Kat’s trajectory. “I think people might be a little bit surprised,” she said of the 180-degree change Kat seems to take in terms of being confident and self-assured. “I think it was a façade that even she didn’t really believe in.”
The Daily Beast spoke with a handful of production sources who claimed that Ferreira indeed walked off set at least two times—not including the time Ferreira had to be helped off after she slipped and fell twice, twisting her ankle during the filming of episode four’s hot tub-puking sequence. Sources also say that at least one sex scene involving Ferreira was cut from a final version of an episode.
HBO declined to comment when approached by The Daily Beast. Ferreira did not respond to requests for comment.
Sources also told The Daily Beast that Ferreira was far from the only one who had issues with the season’s production. One of the main bones of contention were the gruelingly long workdays that could stretch anywhere from 15 to 17 hours. Sources detailed how Levinson rarely came to set with a shot list—a detailed account of every camera shot the director wants during scenes and helps keep the production running smoothly—which often factored into the long set days.
Shooting the premiere’s New Year’s Eve party scene was particularly hellish, sources claimed, as the filming stretched out for over a week and only occurred at night. Even some of the cast noted it was particularly rough. Apatow, the daughter of actress Leslie Mann and filmmaker Judd Apatow, said they were essentially shooting from dusk to dawn. “We shot all night, so we would start at 6pm and go until whenever the sun would rise—5am—and we were so tired,” she told Thrillist. “We were trying so hard to stay awake!”
Euphoria creator Sam Levinson
Monica Schipper/GettyElordi was less diplomatic. “The thing is, we do it for so long,” he said. “We shot that party for over a week, so very quickly it’s like being in Hell. It’s like being in a party that you don’t want to be in. At all. And you can’t wait [to leave].”
Another character whose screen time was whittled away was Chris McKay, played by Algee Smith. In Season 1, McKay was Cassie’s boyfriend and at a crossroads, unsure of his future after leaving for college and realizing that his hopes of becoming a professional football player may be a pipe dream. In a particularly disturbing scene, he’s hazed by fraternity brothers, left naked and crying on the floor as Cassie helplessly looks on.
But by Season 2, McKay is a ghost, only popping up during the New Year’s Eve party where Nate crassly tries to goad him into spilling intimate details about his relationship with Cassie.
Fans began to question why McKay was essentially nonexistent, as ditching the storyline of the lone Black guy of the friend group—whose girlfriend just had an abortion and was now desperately chasing after his best friend—is a curious move for a show that prides itself on inclusive storylines and a diverse cast.
Smith told The Daily Beast in an interview last month that he was also curious as to where his character was heading, and similarly confused as to why he only popped up in one episode. It was a remarkably different experience from the first season, as Smith had previously highlighted how rare it was to be working so closely with a creator/writer on a character’s development.
“I’m not even really sure, to be honest with you,” Smith told The Daily Beast of where McKay’s direction is heading. “I think that’s a question we have to ask our creator [Levinson], where he sees it going. We haven’t even gotten that far in the conversation, him and myself, on this, actually.”
The Daily Beast had approached HBO for comment on why Smith’s storyline was left hanging, but the network declined to comment. When asked if Smith’s vaccination status contributed to his limited screen time, HBO denied it had any bearing on how the script was shaped. “McKay’s storyline was written before the COVID-19 pandemic. To suggest otherwise would be incorrect,” HBO said in a statement.
But Zendaya told The Cut there were major changes made to the season when production came to a standstill for a year due to COVID-19. “There are very few things that remain in the version you’re now seeing,” Zendaya said. “The things that didn’t make it definitely needed to die.”
Indeed, during the production halt there seemed to be a drastic shift in the show’s trajectory.
Levinson has a penchant for changing things on the fly in order to accommodate some of his favored young stars’ ideas. Zendaya, the show’s biggest name, serves as a producer. Schafer was entrusted with co-writing her Euphoria special episode “Fuck Anyone Who’s Not a Sea Blob,” centered around her character Jules.
Zendaya and Hunter Schafer in Euphoria Season 2
HBOSweeney has also sung Levinson’s praises, recalling how much of the cast in Season 1 was “very involved” with their characters. “That was one of the really amazing things, if a scene didn’t feel like it was working or flowing, [Levinson] would sit with us and we would just change it, right then and there, and just rewrite an entire scene,” she told Collider. “You can see on the show that every scene does flow, and it does work, and it does feel very real because we made sure that it was.”
This season, Sweeney has indicated she’s had some say as to where a scene is headed and explained that she feels comfortable voicing her opinion if Cassie seems to be making a decision that’s not entirely aligned with her character.
For instance, Sweeney said she felt there was room to expand upon a blowout fight between Nate and Cassie, and Levinson ended up writing a five-page scene right then and there. Another time Sweeney told The Independent that she gently pushed back on Levinson over some scenes that required nudity. “There are moments where Cassie was supposed to be shirtless and I would tell Sam, ‘I don’t really think that’s necessary here.’ He was like, ‘OK, we don’t need it,’” she explained.
While Ferreira, Levinson, and HBO have remained mum on Euphoria’s behind-the-scenes rumblings, it only adds to the intrigue that’s surrounded the hit show, which seems hell-bent on causing a stir no matter what.
For more, listen to Euphoria’s Martha Kelly on The Last Laugh podcast.
