In one other world, HBO‘s Euphoria would possibly’ve had a contented ending. However then, that wouldn’t have been very truthful, says creator Sam Levinson.
“The sincere ending is folks like Rue don’t make it,” he mentioned in a behind-the-scenes video after the now-series finale.
In Sunday evening’s finale, Zendaya‘s Rue Bennett dies of a fentanyl overdose after relapsing on laced Percocet given to her by Alamo Brown (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje). That’s how former Euphoria star Angus Cloud, who performed Rue’s buddy Fezco O’Neill, died in 2023 — and it’s additionally a destiny Levinson believes he narrowly escaped himself.
“Individuals relapse. They f*ck up. They’re not able to get clear, and so they weren’t dying like they’re now with the inflow of fentanyl into this nation,” he mentioned. “I may say with absolute certainty that if I used to be going via what I went via once I was youthful now, then I wouldn’t be right here, both. There’s no purpose to sugarcoat that. I needed to inform the story for Angus and for individuals who aren’t granted a second probability.”
In fact, he acknowledges how tough it is perhaps for viewers to wrap their head across the alternative, partly due to Zendaya’s magnetic efficiency that has stored audiences on her aspect regardless of her transgressions.
“Zendaya’s efficiency has been so fantastic and layered over the course of those seasons,” he added. “We fell in love with this character, this lady who’s flawed, f*cked up, however has coronary heart and is making an attempt to do proper, no less than typically.”
Rue’s loss of life comes simply 45 minutes into the finale, across the midway level. In one other story, issues would possibly’ve ended there. That will be the “regular, sane tv present,” jokes Levinson, which Euphoria will not be.
Ali (Colman Domingo), Rue’s sponsor, finds her lifeless on his sofa the morning after Alamo tells her to take a while off to handle her accidents from escaping Laurie’s. He shortly discovers the fentanyl-laced capsules and units out for revenge towards the person who killed her.
“I knew that I needed to expertise Rue’s loss of life via him,” Levinson defined. “There’s a form of [feeling of] helplessness. Letting Coleman articulate that, for us as an viewers, is actually essential.”
Ali doesn’t stay helpless for very lengthy, although. After making an attempt to grieve the quote-unquote correct means for just a few months — going to AA conferences, sponsoring others, and counting on his religion — he’s discovered that doesn’t actually work for him anymore. Finally, a hardened Ali tells his assist group that he’ll now not be attending conferences, as he’s looking for a extra significant technique to make a distinction.
Then, he saws the barrel off his shotgun and, within the second shootout of the episode, Ali murders Alamo with three bullets to the chest contained in the Silver Slipper.
“It was good to take Ali out of the field and have him dance with different gamers,” Domingo mentioned of branching out from his sometimes remoted scenes with Zendaya.
It’s not precisely as if any of the opposite characters are in a a lot better spot, both. Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) and Maddy (Alexa Demie) are in a mountain of debt and are attempting to cowl up Nate’s (Jacob Elordi) loss of life.
“Maddy has all the time been very guarded, and I feel at that time within the diner, I feel she’s accomplished. She’s actually tender inside,” Demie mentioned within the video.
Levinson thinks that, whereas their reunification was in some methods born out of duress, Cassie and Maddy are the actual “love story” of Season 3.
“They’ve been via a lot collectively, and there they’re ultimately, all they actually obtained is one another and an entire bunch of debt,” he mentioned.
In the meantime, Lexi (Maude Apatow) is having an existential disaster after studying the Bible that Rue left at her residence. She tries to speak to Cassie about it, however the sisters have by no means actually had an emotional connection, and Cassie shrugs her off. Jules (Hunter Schafer), nonetheless residing in her sugar daddy’s residence to pay for artwork faculty, is clearly grieving the loss as properly.
“I’ve all the time been towards utopian storytelling,” provides Levinson. “I feel ultimately I needed to inform an sincere story about dependancy. I additionally needed to inform a narrative about grief and the emotional turmoil that it will possibly create.”
