Euphoria was the show that put Sam Levinson on the map, but it now might be the end. And maybe that’s for the better with Levinson’s plans for season 3 being … less than stellar. Because why would you basically sideline Zendaya’s Rue as a character?!
In an exclusive with Variety, a detailed look at the fight to save the hit HBO series stated that Levinson had an idea for season 3 that would have Rue as a private detective, relegating Zendaya (the star of the show, who has won multiple awards for her portrayal) to the background of the season. It also states that Zendaya herself pitched an idea for Rue to now be a woman in her 20s, sober, and acting as a pregnancy surrogate for women, and HBO felt that these ideas were tonally not in the same vein as the series.
But let’s go back to this detective idea because what? The last we saw of Rue, she had admitted to staying sober for longer than she had in the past and was fixing some of her relationships (but not really talking to Jules, played by Hunter Schafer). Fez (Angus Cloud) and Ashtray (Javon Walton) were caught up in gunfire from police, and Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) and Maddy (Alexa Demie) were not finished fighting.
It was more of our messy high school dynamics mixed with very real issues, like Euphoria is wont to do. So Rue becoming a private detective is … uh, well, a choice.
Rue Inc, private eye
There have been moments in the past where Rue is investigating something—most of the time, when she was not sober. So to have her as a secondary character tackling her own PI work is truly something that makes little to no sense. And if that were the case, who would be the lead of the show? Cassie, who he made cry over Nate (Jacob Elordi) for an entire season and tank all her friendships in the process?
What exactly would be the plan outside of checking in on Rue in her own noir story? Because this show works when it recognizes the human struggles that its characters are going through. Adding in a gimmick like Rue becoming her own kind of detective completely erases the heart of what fans connect with.
The Variety piece went on to state that HBO was seemingly trying to work with other ideas, like more of the one-off specials like we saw with Rue and Jules’ stories, or maybe even a movie. Instead, they continued to go back to the drawing board, and sources say that Zendaya and the cast are still committed to a third season. The question now is just what are we going to get with one?
(featured image: HBO)
