Euphoria earns early (and deserved) Season 2 renewal from HBO
By Reed Gaudens
HBO showed faith in its controversial teen drama Euphoria with an early pickup. The Zendaya starrer will be back for Season 2 next year.
Four episodes into its highly discussed first season, Euphoria grabbed its all but likely second season renewal from HBO. Despite catching some heat for its mature themes and the 30 odd penises heard round the world, the teen drama series receives advanced support from the premium cabler, given that the freshman has only proven itself as a strong contender with each new airing.
While Euphoria doesn’t match the ratings of its behemoth lead-in Big Little Lies, the Zendaya-led series posted impressive numbers for its premiere episode. Across all HBO platforms, the pilot drew over 5.5 million viewers according to Deadline, and the most recent episode delivered series-best numbers with 609K viewers in its 10 p.m. timeslot. In short, Season 2 is a no brainer.
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Based on the Israeli series of the same name, Euphoria comes from creator Sam Levinson, who incorporated his own experiences into the story of 17-year-old drug addict Rue Bennett (Zendaya). Beyond Rue’s abuse of and struggles with drugs, the teen drama follows the lives of her friends and those in her periphery as they battle the modern clash of sex, social media, trauma, and every adolescent battlefield in between.
Zendaya leads the cast in a career-defining and should-be-showered-in-Emmys performance, and newcomer Hunter Schafer is a revelation as Rue’s best friend Jules. The cast rounds out with additional players Maude Apatow, Angus Cloud, Eric Dane, Alexa Demie, Jacob Elordi, Barbie Ferreira, Nika King, Storm Reid, Algee Smith, and Sydney Sweeney. There’s no word yet on casting additions or subtractions for Season 2, though fans will have to see how the rest of Season 1 shakes out.
For a new series, especially an unprecedented teen drama series on HBO (emphasis on “on HBO”), reviews that harp on its mature themes could be a killer. Yes, there’s nudity, violence, and drug use, but it’s a different experience than other graphic teen shows. It’s rough around the edges, sure, but Euphoria has a complicated message and a twisted narrative worth listening to.
Simply, Euphoria deserves its early second-season pickup because it deserves the chance to continue expanding its world and telling stories we aren’t getting from most current teen-skewed series. Don’t get me wrong, there’s plenty of space for Euphoria to improve, and thankfully, HBO has given the series the opportunity to grow and find its niche amid the tumultuous streaming wars.
If you haven’t watched the first season for yourself, the pilot episode is available to stream on YouTube for free, though under an age restriction. To watch the rest of Euphoria and catch up before Season 2 arrives, you will need to be an HBO or HBO NOW subscriber. An estimated premiere date for the second season wasn’t provided by HBO, but fans should expect the series to capitalize on its breakout success and return sometime in the second half of 2020.
dark. Next. Euphoria did the carnival episode better than any other teen drama series
Are you excited for Euphoria to come back for another season? What do you hope to see in the remainder of the first season, and what do you want Season 2 to dig deeper into? Sound off with your thoughts, feelings, and predictions in the comments!
Euphoria airs Sundays at 10/9c on HBO. Season 2 will premiere as soon as sometime next year.