Euphoria Season 3 is already in trouble

Euphoria Season 3 is reportedly due to begin filming in the next two months, and I don’t think anyone actually saw this happening.

Over the last two years, you’d have been hard-pressed to find a single Euphoria fan who actually thought the third season of the HBO series would go ahead. In fact, the ongoing delays associated with Season 3 have some fans believing the show has been canceled altogether.

It wasn’t always this way. Euphoria has permeated teen culture so powerfully, that it’s become more than a TV show. (“Do they go to Euphoria High?” is a phrase often uttered in reference to someone dressed to the nines for everyday life, or wearing extravagant eye makeup.)

Following its premiere in 2019, Euphoria climbed the ranks among its older, more sophisticated counterparts. Nine Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe win later, the hype around the show was bigger than ever before. With Season 3 reportedly due to begin filming in the next two months, there could have been another few wins in the bag and a third cultural boom…then, something happened.

When your cast is too famous, there’s a problem

When Euphoria first aired in 2019, the cast was hardly a collective of nobodies. Names like Zendaya and Jacob Elordi were somewhat known, but nobody could have predicted just how their Euphoria roles would skyrocket them into stardom.

After winning a Golden Globe and two Emmy Awards as a leading actress for the role of Rue, Zendaya has since become one of the biggest names in Hollywood through her work in the MCU and Dune. Jacob Elordi has — for better or worse — a candle named after him in honor of his bodily fluids in Saltburn. Sydney Sweeney has taken up the mantle of the modern screen siren.

Even the supporting cast (Storm Reid and Maude Apatow being notable examples) have gone on to prove themselves as future stars.

HBO

That’s not to say Euphoria had nothing to do with it. The fact of the matter is that many members of this cast would not have had the careers they’ve since gone into without it. But Euphoria bagged some serious young talent when it first began. Now, it’s unleashed the beasts, and its cast is scattered across the world as icons in the making.

Put simply, the cast is much too famous and much too in demand right now to return to Euphoria with the same commitment they had before.

Now the story of a cast who lost everything

Looking back to 2013, when Netflix revived Arrested Development seven years after Fox canceled it, the result of this very problem can be found. In those seven years (and thanks to the show’s cult popularity), the cast became incredibly well-known.

When the Arrested Development revival arrived in the form of a long-awaited Season 4, something was very off. The now-famous stars had complex schedules and busy careers. As such, production had to work around them, resulting in a muddy and slightly underwhelming season that saw the ensemble cast rarely featured in scenes together.

Proof of this lies in the critical reception of Arrested Development over time. On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season sits at 100%, while the last two seasons (post-revival) dip down to 79% and 55%, respectively. When you make an audience fall in love with your cohesive and charismatic cast, this poses an issue when said cast rightfully grows beyond the confines of what made them famous in the first place.

What now?

Realistically, Euphoria Season 3 is in trouble. Production on the third season was slated to begin very soon, with Sydney Sweeney claiming that Season 3 is next on her schedule. The news, while still welcome for a lot of fans, was surprising. (Since then, HBO has confirmed that the third season is still being pushed back.)

HBO

With the delay in production following the 2023 industry strikes, the piss-poor reception of Sam Levinson’s The Idol, and the exit of Barbie Ferreira from the cast following creative disputes, things weren’t looking good. Most Euphoria fans (myself included) had come to accept that it may not even happen at all.

But now, it’s seemingly very much going ahead. So, what’s ahead of us? Levinson is going to have to reign in Zendaya, Elordi, and Sweeney full-time for a whole other season of sparkly-eyed drama that matches the success of the first two. He’s going to need to rethink entire arcs already planted and address the absence of beloved characters (including Fez, played by Angus Cloud, who tragically died last year).

Make no mistake, I’ll watch. I’ve sunk too much time into Euphoria to not tune into the new season that will inevitably be shoved in front of me in the near future. But what used to be anticipation is now closer to cynicism, and like most fans, I’ll expect it to be this: a continuation too long in the making occupied by a cast that should have flown the nest a long time ago.

To see what the small screen has to offer next, check out our guides to the best TV shows of 2024 and the best binge-worthy shows to watch now. Otherwise, for more Sam Levinson misadventures, see what happened when we binged The Idol so you didn’t have to.