Euphoria Season 3 Is Approaching — Here’s All The Offscreen Controversies It’s Weathered

The only thing more entertaining than Euphoria is the offscreen controversies surrounding it. 

With so many years between seasons of the ever-buzzy HBO series, there’s been no shortage of feuds, shock departures, and general toomfoolery within its orbit. 

Add in the fact that it’s an all-star cast with an *allegedly* troublesome creator and you’ve got all the makings of some truly splashy behind the scenes scandals. 

We’re now gearing up for Euphoria’s third and final season — set to arrive in April — so what better time to take a look back at all the offscreen drama that has circled the show since it launched back in 2019?

From alleged set storm offs to crew in-fighting, here’s all the Euphoria controversies that have crossed our desk. 

Excessive nudity

Let’s start with the biggest issue that’s plagued Euphoria, shall we? From day dot, the series copped heat for the frequency and intensity of its nude scenes. One infamous moment in season one featured a whopping 30 penises, while many other sex scenes were critiqued as veering towards gratuitous. 

First, the backlash was levelled by some TV critics and organisations like the US’ Parents Television and Media Council — who called for all nude teen scenes to be removed — but the complaint was soon raised within Euphoria’s own ranks. 

Sydney Sweeney, who plays Cassie, recalled telling Euphoria creator Sam Levinson to remove an “unnecessary” topless scene, while Alexa Demie, who portrays Maddy, described going nude as “tough”. 

Fellow stars like Chloe Cherry and Minka Kelly also mentioned the excessive nudity required of their characters, with the former saying one of her naked scenes was cut after a co-star intervened and Kelly demanded she remained clothed for her introductory scene in season two.

For what it’s worth, Sweeney later clarified that Levinson was receptive to her requests, while Cherry and Kelly revealed that their contentious scenes were nixed after they raised concerns. It nonetheless raised questions over Levinson’s approach (more on that later).

Louis Tomlinson sex scene

One person certainly not thrilled about all the nudity was Louis Tomlinson, who was depicted in horny fan-fic form in a season one episode. If you recall, an animated version of Tomlinson was seen performing oral sex on his One Direction bandmate Harry Styles as part of a fan-fic excerpt narrated by Kat. 

While the scene materialised the fantasies of millions of Larry Stylinson shippers (including this writer), Tomlinson was having none of it. “I can categorically say that I was not contacted nor did I approve it,” the singer wrote on X. The scene lives on despite his protests, so go find the link if you’re that way inclined. 

Glamourising drugs

Along the same line as its excessive nudity, Euphoria was accused earlier in its run of overexposing and glorifying drug use. US initiative D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) was the first to raise the alarm in 2022, accusing Euphoria of misguidedly “glorifying high school drug use as common in today’s world”. 

Lead star Zendaya, who plays Rue, soon weighed in on the concerns in a statement, saying Euphoria was never intended as a “moral tale to teach people how to live their life”. Levinson, meanwhile, said Rue’s story was heavily inspired by his own struggles with drug addiction as a teenager. 

Shock exits

A bunch of stars have left the cast since Euphoria’s premiere. The buzziest exit was Barbie Ferreira’s, since it came after much backlash over the trajectory of her character on the show. Kat Hernandez went from a core member of the crew in season one to a much more relegated character with less screentime the next time ‘round. 

The switch-up spawned its own bout of controversy among diehard Kat stans, which only accelerated when Ferreira announced her “teary-eyed” departure on Instagram. The actress said Kat’s story had simply reached its natural conclusion before season three, but there were reports something more nefarious was afoot. 

Angus Cloud’s tragic death rocked the show in 2023. HBO shared a statement describing him as a “beloved” part of the Euphoria family as it was confirmed he wouldn’t appear in season three. Storm Reid, Austin Abrams and Nika King are also not returning.

Sam Levinson feuds

If you’ve sensed a pattern in these controversies that rhymes with Bam Devinson, you’re right on the money. The series creator is at the crux of many reported scandals stemming from the show, including with Ferreira. 

There were long-running rumours that the actress was feuding with Levinson prior to her exit, culminating in an alleged storm-off the set during season two. Ferreira quickly denied that rumour — saying she “absolutely never did that” — before reiterating the reason behind her departure. 

“It wasn’t just my choice,” she said on The Viall Files podcast. “After having a lot of conversation and after season two, there was just nowhere to go. Instead of me lingering around for nine months, it was best for both of us that we just kind of ended it there.”

But the buck didn’t stop with Ferreira. Reports emerged in 2024 that Levinson was also feuding with Zendaya over the many delays in getting Euphoria’s third season off the ground. 

Insiders claimed the actress felt Levinson was “distracted” by his other show, the almost universally loathed The Idol, while others insisted Levinson had a gripe with Zendaya’s bustling schedule as a burgeoning movie star. Neither party has confirmed the rumours, but it wasn’t the first time on-set tensions had made their way to press. 

Toxic work environment

In 2022, The Daily Beast published an investigation with multiple allegations of a “toxic work environment” on the set of Euphoria. It included accusations, levelled by various anonymous members of the production team, of long working hours, violations of SAG-AFTRA rules and injuries on set. 

HBO soon released a statement denying the claims, saying “the well-being of cast and crew on our productions is always a top priority”.

“The production was in full compliance with all safety guidelines and guild protocols. It’s not uncommon for drama series to have complex shoots … We maintain an open line of communication with all the guilds, including SAG-AFTRA. There were never any formal inquiries raised,” the statement read. 

Levinson was again subject to an exposé in 2023, when Rolling Stone published an in-depth look behind the scenes of The Idol, including claims about the change in creative direction and the influence of lead star The Weeknd. Read more about that controversy HERE.   

Castmate controversies

Euphoria controversies are seemingly contagious, with multiple castmates also weathering their own scandals off-screen. In 2022, Hunter Schafer, who plays Jules, was forced to deny she was opposed to non-binary people after she was caught ‘liking’ a post blaming them for hate aimed at the trans community. 

“I hold absolutely no hatred towards nonbinary folks,” Schafer wrote on Instagram. 

Around the same time, Sweeney caught heat after sharing a picture in which one of her relatives was wearing Donald Trump merch, kickstarting the Republican rumours that dogged her right up until the clusterfuck that was the American Eagle jeans ad.

Sweeney tried to put the kibosh on that hullabaloo last month. Whether or not she was successful is up to you…

Production delays

Some of those controversies, including the exposes and feud rumours, are thought to have played a role in the long delay between Euphoria’s second and third seasons. 

The SAG-AFTRA strikes, COVID-19 pandemic, and Levinson’s focus on The Idol also reportedly contributed to the elongated break, as well as the availability of stars like Zendaya and Jacob Elordi.

It remains to be seen whether the controversies will impact the quality of the third season, but we do know for sure that Euphoria will continue to generate chatter — one meme, scandal, or rumour at a time. 

Lead images: HBO