“Sam, Zendaya, and the entire cast and crew of Euphoria have taken season 2 to extraordinary heights, challenging narrative convention and form, while maintaining its heart,” Francesca Orsi, executive vice president of HBO Programming, said in a statement when the renewal was announced. Thus, it’s no shocker that before the second season ended, Euphoria was renewed for a third. (Viewership for the second season was nearly double that of the first, Varietyreported). The adult drama is undoubtedly one of HBO’s most popular series, and despite critics’s vocal judgment of the show’s graphic content-and inconsistent plot-fans and haters alike couldn’t help but tune in every Sunday. We were also treated to astounding performances by Sydney Sweeney, Alexa Demie, and Nika King, all of whom showed more vulnerability than ever this season. Plot points aside, Euphoria’s second chapter brought us more beautiful cinematography and Labrinth’s tear-inducing soundtrack. Sure, fans expected drugs, betrayal, and sex with some violence sprinkled in between (you know, your average run-of-the-mill high school problems), but creator Sam Levinson definitely surprised us with an onslaught in the HBO drama’s sophomore chapter: Rue’s breakdown, Cassie’s secret affair, Cal’s penis, and of course, Lexi’s all-too-revealing play. And just to kind of feel like you're not the only one and to feel like your experience is a valid one, and that there can be hope after that I think was so important to us.Just when we thought Euphoria couldn’t get more intense, season 2 opened with Fezco’s grandmother shooting his abusive father in both legs. Or maybe they're a parent of someone, maybe they're Leslie, maybe they're Gia. Whether it be a loved one or a parent or whatever the case may be, and how they're healing and growing from that. And I think what became even more important to us when we got there is we can't leave Rue here because again, she means so much to so many people who are on that journey in sobriety or are healing or dealing with their own loss. And I think, at least with episode five, we didn't wanna shy away from the ugliness of those moments because it's scary and it's painful. ZENDAYA: I remember last season, there was an episode that Sam wrote about depression, because he was kind of going through a depressive episode and he just wrote about it, and so many people connected to that because it put words to a feeling that they don't feel like they could maybe express themselves. And I can flirt with her mom, play with her little sister, you know, make everybody uncomfortable. I can come in, I can tell some little jokes and tell her she looks like the cat dragged her in or something like that. So I think that's Sam's intention as well. Because the scenes are more steady and we sit and we just talk, and I don't think we're covering it to death, so it feels different. Right? I don't know, because I don't work on the other sets with the other castmates, so I always feel like Zendaya always says it feels a little different when I'm there. I even feel like Sam does different things with the camera work in our scenes. It's just saying the truth and really holding that space. I think that is just - I don't even know if it's love. You can't put on an air like you could for a fellow classmate or something. We're sort of like that honesty, that reality you can't get away from. We are part of the same universe, but we have a different function in a way. COLMAN DOMINGO: I do almost feel like that.