'Euphoria' season 3 will be its last after tragic death
The "Euphoria" season 3 finale released Sunday night marked the end of an era for the HBO Max show.
The streaming giant confirmed the news to ABC News on Monday, following the heartbreaking finale on May 31, which saw the death of its main character, Rue Bennett, played by Zendaya.
"Euphoria" creator and director first mentioned that the show was coming to an end after season 3 in an interview with Popcast.
"In terms of the story that we set out to tell, which is a story about addiction and its consequences, this feels like the end to me," he said.
The third season of the hit series kicked off on April 12 and picked up after a time jump.
It followed the group of childhood friends who wrestled with "the virtue of faith, the possibility of redemption, and the problem of evil," according to a logline for the series.
In the finale episode, Rue, who struggled with drug addiction throughout the series, dies from a fentanyl overdose. Colman Domingo's character, Ali, is the one who finds her deceased on his couch.
When asked by Popcast about his decision to end Rue's story the way it did in the last episode, Levinson said, "I'd always been really concerned with the prevalence of fentanyl and it's something we dealt with over the seasons."
He added that when Angus Cloud, who portrayed Fezco in the series, died from an accidental drug overdose in July 2023, Levinson said that he had to "reconceive the script."
"I thought, you can't tell a story about addiction today without the very real consequences," he said. "Most people don't get a second chance. Fentanyl can just take you out in an instant."
"This is something that has hit close to home for a lot of people in this country," Levinson continued. "If we were really going to be saying something with this season, we really needed to put the audience in the position of a family member who loses someone that they love."
Along with Zendaya and Domingo, season 3 starred Sydney Sweeney, Jacob Elordi, Maude Apatow, Hunter Schafer, Alexa Demie, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Nika King, Martha Kelly and Chloe Cherry.
Additionally, "Euphoria" season 3 marked Eric Dane's last performance as an actor before his death in February 2025. Levinson also incorporated footage of Cloud.
Levinson said working on "Euphoria" was a "fulfilling journey in terms of this cast, the crew, what we were able to accomplish."
He added that he was "immensely proud of the work we did, the story we told and it's a tragic one in the end, but it's the truth."
"If you are experimenting or taking drugs today, it's very possible it'll kill you. And I think it was a way of honoring Angus and saying a prayer for the future," he said.
