Featured Image Credit: HBO
Topics: Euphoria, HBO, Zendaya, Sydney Sweeney, Entertainment, TV And Film, Social Media, Twitter
Madison Burgess
Topics: Euphoria, HBO, Zendaya, Sydney Sweeney, Entertainment, TV And Film, Social Media, Twitter
Warning: This article includes spoilers for Euphoria season three episode two.
Euphoria creator Sam Levinson has faced online backlash over some of the graphic details in the TV show's latest season.
The HBO drama dropped the second episode of season three over the weekend, starring the likes of Zendaya, Sydney Sweeney, Jacob Elordi, and the late Eric Dane.
It's set five years after we last saw the characters, as they're now done with high school and out living very different lives in the real world.
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Now, it's no secret that Euphoria has always been graphic, tackled difficult subjects, featured a lot of nudity, and overall pushed boundaries during its previous two-season run.
And the latest instalment is no different, as viewers have picked up on a few particularly shocking scenes that some felt were 'unnecessary'.
One of them is Faye's (Chloe Cherry) very X-rated sex scene with drug dealer Wayne (Toby Wallace), which features a Nazi flag hung on the bedroom wall behind her.
Another aspect that's not sat well with some viewers is that the N-word is used a number of times, by a few different characters, including Angel (Priscilla Delgado) and one of Laurie's (Martha Kelly) workers.
One viewer took to X to write: "The nazi flag in the room and the tattoo, Sam Levinson, you are so gross #euphoria."
While a second added: "That Faye scene was not needed at all. Like at all. It added nothing to the plot??"
A third commented: "I swear, why the f*** is there a sex scene with the Nazi flag in the background?"
A fourth penned: "I HATED how they kept using the n-word in this episode. It was NOT needed."
Meanwhile, another viewer said: "It's absolutely brutal to watch the episodes of Euphoria, each one more traumatic than the last with totally unnecessary scenes that don't add anything to any plot."
"Can Angel even say that…. #euphoria," someone else questioned, while one person wrote: "How many n-word drops from these white characters like??? #euphoria."
Although he hasn't spoken out on the backlash, Levinson has addressed one specific scene where strip club boss Alamo (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) finds it more offensive to be called a 'pig' than the N-word.
The creator told Variety: "I just thought it was interesting to play with the racial dynamics of these two crews. There’s this built-in animosity. With the pig comment, it just seemed interesting as an entry point into this man’s psychology.
"There’s something about it he can’t get over. He doesn’t understand why she would refer to him that way. Is it about his weight? Is it because he’s greedy?"
Levinson added: "It opens up this insecurity in him that allows us to start to see how human he is. There are things someone could say to any one of us that may seem insignificant, but it sticks in our head. It was a way of playing with the absurdity of racial dynamics, these miscommunications that lead to greater troubles."
Meanwhile, Akinnuoye-Agbaje added: "As a man who pulled himself up from his bootstraps post-slavery to become what he regards as the emperor of his empire, it was interesting that 'pig' was worse for Alamo than the n-word.
"For me, it was about trying to figure out why, and Sam gave me license in the scene. In so doing, it was like, 'Why is this triggering his trauma? Well, a pig is an animal that eats its own faeces. And here I am, the emperor, and she’s calling me a pig'. It triggered all of his insecurity."
Tyla has contacted Levinson and HBO for comment.