Euphoria returns to screens with tributes to late stars

By Georgia Bates, Press Association

The long-awaited return of Euphoria featured tributes to two late stars of the show, Eric Dane and Angus Cloud.

The popular HBO hit, centring around a teenage drug addict struggling to get clean, returned for its third series after a four-year hiatus caused by reported rewrites, delays and other undisclosed hurdles.

Zendaya, Jacob Elordi and Sydney Sweeney have all become Hollywood superstars since the show last aired, and they all reprised their roles for the latest instalment, which is set five years after the events of the second season.

The first episode of season three featured tributes to Dane, who played conflicted antagonist Cal Jacobs, and Cloud, who starred as drug dealer Fezco O’Neill.

Grey’s Anatomy star Dane died at the age of 53 earlier this year, less than three years after revealing he had been diagnosed with the progressive neurodegenerative disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Cloud died at the age of 25 in 2023 following an accidental overdose.

After his death, Zendaya paid tribute to the late actor and said “words are not enough to describe the infinite beauty” of her co-star.

A third tribute was also paid to Kevin Turen, who was an executive producer on the show.

The episode ended with a black screen reading In Memoriam, with a moment for each of the three names: Eric Dane, Angus Cloud and Kevin Turen.

The new series reveals Sweeney’s character Cassie Howard has taken up work as a cam-girl – a performer who streams live, often erotic, video content over the internet for money – and will tie the knot with her boyfriend Nate, played by Elordi.

Zendaya’s character, Rue Bennett, continues to face dangerous situations, including meeting drug kingpins and being threatened with guns and violence.

In season two, her character lost 10,000 dollars of supply from drug lord Laurie, played by Martha Kelly.

Since the first series aired in 2019, stars of the show have rocketed to fame, with Zendaya starring in films including Challengers and The Drama, as well as the Spider-Man and Dune franchises, and Elordi starring in Emerald Fennell’s adaptation of Wuthering Heights and Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein, which earned him an Oscar nomination.

Sweeney has recently featured in the 2025 psychological thriller The Housemaid, an adaptation of the popular book by Freida McFadden.

The film took £22.6 million at the UK and Ireland box office and will return for a sequel.

Euphoria, which is created, written, directed and executive produced by Sam Levinson, airs on Sky and HBO Max in the UK.