At long last, after a myriad number of delays, hiatuses, and creative standoffs, Sam Levinson‘s “Euphoria” returns to HBO for its third season next April. The network still hasn’t announced an official release date yet, but Levinson did reveal significant plot details for S3 at a Content London event today in a new interview. THR has the scoop there, and it’s well worth reading for fans of the series.
First things first, the five-year jump out of the show’s high school setting is real, and also deliberate. “The one thing we all agreed on is we can’t go back to high school — although many, many shows have had 30-year-old high school students, we’re not,” Levinson confirmed. “Five years felt like a natural place [to jump] because if they had gone to college they’d be out of college at that time.” That means “Euphoria” will catch up with returning characters not only after high school, but also college, if they went (although that doesn’t apply to everyone; more on that later).
So where will viewers find everyone five years later? Zendaya‘s Rue will be on the lam south of the border in Mexico, deep in debt to Martha Kelly‘s drug dealer, Laurie. According to Levinson, Rue is “trying to come up with some very innovative ways to pay it off,” but the Mexico backdrop means she’ll likely be far away and out of touch with other characters.
That includes Sydney Sweeney‘s Cassie and Jacob Elordi‘s Nate, who are not only engaged but will also get married in S3. “I promise that it will be an unforgettable night,” Levinson teased. “Cassie is living in the suburbs with Nate. They’re engaged, and she’s very addicted to social media and envious of what appears to be the big lives that all of her high school classmates are living at this point in time.” Expect fireworks at that wedding ceremony equivalent, if not surpassing, those from Lexi’s play in S2.
Speaking of Lexi, S3 opens with her working as an assistant to a showrunner played by new cast member, Sharon Stone. Stone is one of 28 new cast members in “Euphoria” S3, a list that also includes Danielle Deadwyler, Bella Podaras, Bill Bodner, Cailyn Rice, Colleen Camp, Eli Roth, Gideon Adlon, Natasha Lyonne, and more. Elsewhere, Hunter Schafer‘s Jules is in art school, “very nervous about having a career as a painter and trying to avoid responsibility at all costs,” while Alexa Demi‘s Maddie works at a Hollywood talent agency, along with “her own side hustles.” As for other returning actors like Eric Dane, Chloe Cherry, Dominic Fike, Nika King, and Colman Domingo, well, we’ll just have to wait and see where they’re at.
“It’s exciting to write this show because there are aspects that I can draw upon in my own life,” Levinson stated about “Euphoria” S3. “But at the end of the day, it’s also about telling the story of what it’s like to be out of the safety net of school and trying to figure out who you are in the world and what matters to you. … The stakes are a bit higher than they were in the past because the consequences are real, and no one’s gonna swoop in and save you. I feel strongly this is our best season yet.”
HBO subscribers must wait until next Spring to see if that’s the case. Stay tuned for more details about “Euphoria” S3, and a first teaser/trailer, as 2026 begins.
