Zendaya on Euphoria's Episode 5: ‘Redemption Is Possible’ for Rue

Ellise Shafer SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not watched the first seven episodes of “Euphoria” Season 2. Despite the immense popularity of HBO’s “Euphoria,” clearing a song for use in the show isn’t as easy as it may appear — especially when it comes to legacy artists and estates.As music supervisor Jen Malone puts it, the teenage drama series has “sex, nudity, violence, drugs, guns. There’s not one thing that was missing as far as red flags for approval parties.”And yet the first episode of Season 2 kicks off with Billy Swan’s cover of “Don’t Be Cruel,” made famous by Elvis Presley.

Ellise Shafer SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not seen “Euphoria” Season 2, Episode 7, “The Theater and Its Double.” When Ryan Heffington set out to choreograph the dance number in the penultimate episode of “Euphoria” Season 2, he took a cue from the song it’s set to, Bonnie Tyler’s “Holding Out for a Hero.”“I knew it was — and had to be — larger than life,” Heffington tells Variety of the dance, which takes place during Lexi’s (Maude Apatow) play and features over a dozen men in shiny gold football pants gyrating against work out equipment — and each other — in the locker room. Ethan (Austin Abrams) stars in the dance as a character mirroring Nate (Jacob Elordi), whose sexuality (and homophobia) has been bottling underneath the surface during the past two seasons.

has been at the top of its class. But that doesn't mean the series is looking to make its stars feel uncomfortable.Recently, Minka Kelly sat down for an interview with  and revealed exactly how her discomfort with one planned nude scene led to a rewrite by writer-creator Sam Levinson.Kelly joined the HBO drama in the second season as Samantha, a wealthy would-be mentor of sorts to Maddy Perez (Alexa Demie), whom she hires as a babysitter for her son.According to Kelly, she signed on with the expectation of it being for a single episode, but her chemistry with Demie led to Levinson stretching the role out to something more significant that spanned the rest of the second season.However, on her very first day on set, Kelly said that there was one scene that she asked to have changed because she didn't feel right about the level of nudity involved.

Euphoria star Minka Kelly has revealed she pushed back against a nude scene that was planned for her character Samantha.The actress’ character hired Maddy (Alexa Demie) as a babysitter for her child as part of the ongoing second season, and has appeared in a number of episodes.However, Kelly explained in a new interview that her character description was “actually so vague” when she initially signed on for the role, before her part was expanded, with creator Sam Levinson rewriting elements on the go.“That can be frustrating and can throw some people off, but I actually trust and feel safe with a director who’s not afraid to change his mind,” she told Vanity Fair. “At the end of the day, the goal is what ends up onscreen.

Ellise Shafer SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not seen the first six episodes of “Euphoria” Season 2.Labrinth doesn’t necessarily consider himself a composer.“I know I am, but I don’t look at myself that way,” the 33-year-old tells Variety. “I’m just transmitting energy that I hear and see and feel.”Indeed, when most people think of a score, they likely hear music that is purely instrumental and orchestral.

season 2 has been building up to this moment, with Lexi’s (Maude Apatow) semi-biographical play taking center stage in the penultimate episode, “The Theater and Its Double,” written and directed by creator Sam Levinson. Austin Abrams, who plays Ethan, talks to ET about his show-stopping, homoerotic dance routine he performs as a version of Nate (Jacob Elordi) and how he feels about where things ended up between Ethan and Kat (Barbie Ferreira) this season. After first appearing in season 1 as Kat’s geek-ish lab partner who takes an interest in her, Ethan has slowly grown into his own over the course of the first two seasons of.

Zendaya is the Emmy-winning star of HBO’s hit series Euphoria and with her stardom rising every day, it’s possible that she doesn’t want to be tied to a television contract for years to come.

It’s no secret to Euphoria viewers that East Highland High School is full of teenage drug addicts and toxic relationships. However, there are still a lot of questions to be answered as the HBO show’s second season comes to an end.

Yet another actress from the buzzy HBO series Euphoria has stepped forward to talk about nude scenes.

Mónica Marie Zorrilla SPOILER ALERT: Do not read if you have not watched Season 2 of “Euphoria” on HBO. Lyla Garrity, the bubbly, spoiled country princess of “Friday Night Lights” iconically portrayed by Minka Kelly, had a thing for football jocks and hyping them up on the field, but that’s just about where the superficial similarities between Lyla and “Euphoria’s” Maddy Perez (Alexa Demie) — TV’s latest teen queen bee — end. Garrity was a cotton-candy angel compared to Perez’s sour and smart-mouthed demeanor.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer“Euphoria” hit another series high on Sunday, drawing 5.1 million viewers across multiple platforms, a 20% increase from last week and up 45% from the season average. That number was reached despite the HBO drama airing opposite Super Bowl LVI on NBC.As Variety previously exclusively reported, “Euphoria’s” Season 2 per-episode-viewership average is up nearly 100% from its first season.“Euphoria” Season 2 takes place amidst the intertwining lives in the town of East Highland, where 17-year-old Rue (Zendaya) must find hope while balancing the pressures of love, loss, and addiction.The series stars Zendaya, Hunter Schafer, Nika King, Eric Dane, Angus Cloud, Jacob Elordi, Algee Smith, Sydney Sweeney, Alexa Demie, Barbie Ferreira, Maude Apatow, Javon Walton, Dominic Fike, Storm Reid and Austin Abrams.

Mónica Marie Zorrilla SPOILER ALERT: This piece contains spoilers for Season 2 of “Euphoria.”If Martha Kelly were to go full-on, TV-show-level Big Bad, her villain origin story would start with her phone’s GPS malfunctioning.“I think if I were to flip out and become a psychopath, it would be because my Google Maps or whatever told me to get off on an exit that stumbled me into some road work that was bringing traffic to a standstill. That would be the thing that turned me into a monster,” the “Euphoria” actor told Variety in her signature, dead-pan voice.The stand-up comedian and “Baskets” breakout star had been a fan of “Euphoria” prior to being handpicked by the showrunner, creator, writer and executive producer Sam Levinson for the role of drug-dealing, middle-aged loner Laurie, one woman you absolutely wouldn’t want to mess with.

A breakout star. Since his first appearance on Euphoria fans have been dying to see — and know — more of Angus Cloud‘s Fezco, and creator Sam Levinson has granted their wish.

"Euphoria" fans have never, ever been happier. Fans of the trippy, Zendaya-led teen drama will be able to chase the same high after season 2 because the scandalous and visually sensational Sam Levinson series will return for a third season. The Emmy-winning high school show was a shoo-in for a junior year renewal.

HBO has renewed US teen drama Euphoria for a third season.The network confirmed the news on Twitter, ahead of the premiere of the fifth episode from season two on Sunday (February 6).In the second season, Rue (Zendaya) has relapsed after Jules (Hunter Schafer) left her for the city in the first season, while classmates Nate (Jacob Elordi), Maddy (Alexa Demie) and Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) are navigating their own tensions with school back in session.The show is written, directed and executive produced by Sam Levinson, who also helmed the 2021 film Malcolm & Marie which also starred Zendaya.#EUPHORIA has been renewed for season 3. pic.twitter.com/JR17ATJQCh— HBO (@HBO_UK) February 4, 2022Francesca Orsi, EVP of HBO programming, said: “Sam, Zendaya, and the entire cast and crew of Euphoria have taken season two to extraordinary heights, challenging narrative convention and form, while maintaining its heart.

Mónica Marie Zorrilla “Euphoria” fans have never, ever been happier.Fans of the trippy, Zendaya-led teen drama will be able to chase the same high after Season 2 because the scandalous and visually sensational Sam Levinson series will return for a third season.The Emmy-winning high school show was a shoo-in for a junior year renewal. Along with the intoxicating amount of social media traction and buzz it generates on a week-by-week basis, the first three installments of Season 2 have nearly doubled in per-episode viewership in comparison to its freshman season.

HBO will get a third dose of Euphoria. The Emmy-winning drama series starring Zendaya from creator Sam Levinson has been renewed for Season 3.Euphoria’s renewal comes as its sophomore season continues to deliver ratings records for both HBO and HBO Max.

Euphoria than the first, HBO has revealed.According to Variety, the hit teen drama has nearly doubled its season one per-episode viewership, jumping from a 6.6million average for the first season to 13.1million viewers since the second season first aired on January 9.The fourth episode of season two drew 3.2million viewers last Sunday (January 30), which makes it the show’s second-most-watched episode ever behind the third episode of season two, which drew 3.6million viewers.Euphoria was created, written and executive produced by Sam Levinson, who also directs all the episodes of season two. The show stars Emmy winner Zendaya alongside Hunter Schafer, Angus Cloud, Jacob Elordi, Sydney Sweeney, Alexa Demie, Barbie Ferreira, Maude Apatow and more.Last month, Sweeney praised Levinson for allowing her to cut nude scenes for her character Cassie in season two.Speaking to The Independent, Sweeney said: “Sam [Levinson] is amazing.