Euphoria Recap: The Sins of the Father

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Cassie’s whole “I think I should be single and work on myself” plan hits a psychopath-sized snag in this week’s Euphoria — but that’s far from the only havoc Nate Jacobs wreaks during the hour.

Before the ending credits roll, The Artist Formerly Known as Tyler has dumped (and then done) Cassie in a location straight outta Serial Killer Digest AND he’s managed to get his father in a blackmail-type situation. Whatever else you wanna say about the kid, you’ve gotta admire his multitasking abilities.

Read on for the highlights of “Out of Touch.”

‘IT WAS COMPLICATED’ | Rue’s voiceover informs us that Nate was in love with Cassie, “but it was complicated.” As Maddy and Cassie drive him from the New Year’s Eve party to the hospital, we watch Nate fantasize about Cassie — who’s naked in a lot of this flight of fancy — and come to the conclusion that he wants to be with her for the rest of his life. (Side note: Was it just me, or did that montage include flashes of Jules shooting nudes, too?) Cal comes to the hospital to pray over his bloodied boy; meanwhile, an out-of-it Nate dreams about Cassie being pregnant with their child and Cal being really, really weird about the whole situation. In fact, Rue’s voiceover tells us, Nate sometimes wished Cal would just drop dead.

All of the fantasizing about Cassie, however, is pointless: As Rue points out, Maddy still has the disc that she found in Nate’s room in the Season 1 finale.

CAL IS ON IT | When his father asks, Nate claims not to remember who turned his face into raw hamburger at the party. So Cal pays a visit to Lexi and Cassie’s house, where he threatens to involve the police — who will check their cell phones, he bluffs — and the mere thought of Maddy finding out that Cassie and Nate are texting has Cass singing like a bird. (By the way, that text, in which Cassie said it was a “mistake” that she and Nate slept together? It was followed immediately by a call from Nate, who warned her, “Don’t ever put that in writing again.”

Cal then swings by Fezco’s shop; he carries a gun, but doesn’t take it out of his pocket. Lexi happens to be there at the same time; so are Ashtray and Fay, the heroin addict from the season premiere, who pushed the motel manager off a balcony and is crashing with the boys while she lays low. Nothing actually happens while Cal is in the convenience store, but it’s a VERY tense scene nonetheless.

While that’s happening, Nate drives Cassie to a very creepy housing development construction site to tell her he really likes her but they can’t be together and “we can never, ever speak about this.” Cassie responds by getting out of the car and running; anyone else know at least one girl in high school who always stalked/ran away from situations of heightened drama, if for no other reason than to center said drama on themselves? Not that I’m blaming Cassie; running away from Nate is probably one of the best decisions we’ve seen her make so far. But it seems like she does so in order to make him run after her — which he does — and ugh.

She winds up on the second floor of one of the skeletal homes. Somehow he finds her. He kisses her and takes off her panties, then sinks to his knees and starts nosing around but stops to wonder “How are you ever going to be able to look Maddy in the eye again?” Given that earlier, Nate warned Cassie that Maddy would “actually kill you” if she ever found out about their dalliance, this move seems like head games in the extreme, no?

NATE HAS THE UPPER HAND | When Nate gets home, Cal is waiting for him. “You wanna tell me why some punk drug dealer beat you up?,” Papa Jacobs wonders. Be careful what you wish for, dude. “You remember that classmate of mine that you f–ked, Jules?,” Nate calmly asks his dad. He says Jules told Rue, who told Fez, and they threatened to go to the police to say that Cal is a pedophile. “So maybe I was sticking up for you,” Nate muses, conveniently removing his stint as Tyler from this incredibly icky story.

Cal, stricken, apologizes, saying that he didn’t know Jules went to school with Nate “or what she was.” Nate says Jules didn’t know Cal was filming their encounter, and we see a new panic fill the older man’s eyes. “Do you have it, Nate?,” he asks just before the hour ends. “Do you have it?”

HOW LONG IS THIS DOWNWARD SPIRAL, ANYWAY? | Over in Rue-land, we learn that she’s been spending a lot of time with Elliot, the guy she got high with in the laundry room on New Year’s Eve. But she hasn’t mentioned him to Jules… which makes things incredibly awkward when the trio run into each other at school. Rue is acting so weird that Jules immediately realizes that Rue has a crush on Elliot; what she doesn’t realize, much to Elliot’s later surprise, is that Rue is doing drugs pretty regularly.

Jules later goes bowling with Kat, Ethan and Maddy. When Rue texts that she wants to come over, Jules ignores it.

Also that evening, Rue gets high with Elliot then bikes to her Narcotics Anonymous meeting. Ali instantly realizes she’s not sober. “I see you’re still on your suicide mission,” he remarks. “Let go, let God,” she shoots back, strung out. He drives her home after, freaking her out when he announces that he wants to come in and meet her mom. It’s all very cordial, though Rue is vibrating at a very high frequency as she worries that he’s going to out her continued drug use to her mom. And when her mom asks Ali how Rue is doing, it seems like maybe Rue’s fears are founded. But he dodges the query a little, saying only, “She’s got a long way to go.”

‘LOVE YOURSELF! LOVE YOURSELF!’ | About that bowling night: It was supposed to be an Ethan/Kat date, and he’s not psyched that she invited her friends. But as we learn throughout the episode, Kat is realizing that she doesn’t love Ethan, but it’s probably because she hates herself. (Side note: That scene of all of the influencers etc. showing up in her room and screaming at her to “LOVE YOURSELF!” was pretty great.) Also of interest: All of Kat’s friends think her relationship with Ethan is unproblematically perfect, and they’re jealous.

In other news: Maddy is babysitting for a boy named Theo, whose mother (played by Friday Night Lights‘ Minka Kelly) has a to-die-for closet that Maddy likes to raid after the kid goes to bed. And from the way the buzzed mom lets her hand linger on Maddy after asking for an assist with a zipper at the end of one evening, you know this is going to get weird quickly.

Now it’s your turn. What did you think of the episode? Sound off in the comments!

Euphoria season 2 episode 3 release date and plot explored

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Warning – Spoilers ahead

Sam Levinson’s swan dive into the shocking lives of high school students presented a slick character study in the form of 2019’s Euphoria season 1, and now the second chapter is in full bloom.

We now look ahead to preview episode 3 by revealing its release date and exploring the plot points fans should expect this installment to cover.

Based on an Israeli miniseries of the same name and adapted for HBO by Levinson, Euphoria stars Zendaya, Hunter Schafer, Jacob Elordi, Eric Dane, and more, in a stellar ensemble piece that explores the psychology and relationships of a slew of characters we quickly became attached to.

Euphoria | Season 2 Official Teaser Trailer | HBO BridTV 6853 Euphoria | Season 2 Official Teaser Trailer | HBO 907279 907279 center 13872

Euphoria season 2 episode 3 release date

Euphoria season 2 episode 3 is scheduled to release on Sunday, January 23, 2022, on HBO and HBO Max.

New episodes of the show debut at 9 PM ET on both HBO and the channel’s streaming platform.

UK viewers are able to watch new episodes of season 2 Mondays on Sky Atlantic at 2 AM and the latest installment of the series will also be available to watch via NOW TV by way of an Entertainment membership.

still from Euphoria season 2 trailer, HBO, A24 et al.

What will episode 3 be about?

Episode 3, titled ‘Ruminations: Big and Little Bullys,’ promises a new business opportunity on the horizon for Rue.

In the episode 3 promo, it ends with Rue practicing a speech in front of the mirror, stating: “I’m Rue, I would love to present you with a business opportunity.”

Episode 3 will also continue Rue’s proclamation that she does not intend to stay clean and the installment will likely explore how that sits with the people around her.

Elsewhere, Cassie seems to be frustrated with Nate’s lack of attention towards her and it looks like Cal could be in a bit of trouble.

Additionally, Jules will interrogate Elliot’s friendship with Rue, as their new connection doesn’t sit right.

How many episodes are in Euphoria season 2?

Euphoria season 2 has eight episodes scheduled to be released into its second chapter.

This episode count follows the show’s first season, which also premiered eight episodes.

With new twists, turns, and engaging character development happening every week, we’ve highlighted when each new episode of season 2 will be dropping:

Episode 1: ‘Trying to Get to Heaven Before They Close the Door’ – Sunday, January 9, 2022

Episode 2: ‘Out of Touch’ – Sunday, January 16, 2022

Episode 3: ‘Ruminations: Big and Little Bullys’ – Sunday, January 23, 2022

Episode 4 – Sunday, January 30, 2022

Episode 5 – Sunday, February 6, 2022

Episode 6 – Sunday, February 13, 2022

Episode 7 – Sunday, February 20, 2022

Episode 8 – Sunday, February 27, 2022

These scheduled release dates for every episode are thought to be accurate with HBO’s airing schedule, providing no network delays follow.

As each episode airs on Sunday evenings for US viewers, this translates to 2 AM the following day for UK viewers.

HBO

By Jo Craig – [email protected]

In other news, Will there be an Episode 7 in The Expanse Season 6?

The Truth About Why Rue and Jules Broke Up (SPOILERS)

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Spoiler Alert: This article contains major spoilers for Euphoria.

More than two years after the series premiere of Euphoria, the highly-anticipated HBO drama returned for Season 2 on Jan. 9. In the Season 1 finale, things seemingly came to an end between Rue (Zendaya) and Jules (Hunter Schafer) in the worst way.

Despite their plans to be together, prom night ended in heartbreak for Rue after Jules skipped town. But why did Jules leave Rue at the train station?

How Old Is Everyone on Euphoria ?

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Euphoria is back with season 2 and with it comes the age-old question: How old is the cast of Euphoria? The show, which Zendaya has warned her younger fans about, has extremely mature themes, which means that the cast is a bit older than the characters they’re portraying on HBO hit. With conversations about sexuality, assault, drug addiction, and more, the series isn’t for younger audiences, and the cast themselves are in their twenties (for the most part).

With the return of season 2, fans are worried about the future for Rue and what is going to happen as we return to their world. Are things going to work out with Rue and Jules? What will happen with her struggle with addiction? How much will Nate’s villainous ways continue to haunt those around him?

But how old are the characters of Euphoria in comparison to the actors playing them? Let’s take a look!

Rue (played by Zendaya)

When we meet Rue in season 1, she is 17 years old. We meet her in the summer before her junior year, when she went to rehab for drug addiction. Played by 25-year-old actress Zendaya, the role won her an Emmy, and rightfully so. Born on September 1, 1996, Zendaya doesn’t look out of place playing a 17-year-old Rue.

Jules (played by Hunter Schafer)

Jules is a junior, just like Rue and the majority of their friends. Played by activist, model, and all around star Hunter Schaefer, Jules struggles to find herself in a new school but finds a relationship with Rue that brings the two back together time and time again. Schaefer is currently 23 years old, recently celebrating her birthday on New Year’s Eve!

Gia (Storm Reid)

Rue’s younger sister is Gia, who is 13 years old in the series. Storm Reid, who plays her, was born on July 1, 2003 and turned 18 years old last year. She’s not the youngest member of the cast, but playing Rue’s middle school-age sister has her on the younger side of the cast at large. Gia’s storyline is tied to her discovery of Rue when she overdosed in her room during season 1 and struggling with her emotions about her sister’s addiction.

Fez (Angus Cloud)

The interesting thing about Fez’s age is that he dropped out of school, which means we’re not sure how old he was when he did so or how old that makes him now. The actor behind him, Angus Cloud, was born on July 10, 1994, making him 27 years old and a bit older then the rest of the cast, which makes sense for Fez as a character. We might not know his exact age, but he is probably at least 19, if not in his early 20s, which makes his new seeming attraction to Lexi, a high school junior, uncomfortable.

Nate (Jacob Elordi)

The show’s antagonist is Nate, who takes his own complicated issues out on the characters around him. Nate is a senior, putting him at 18 years old. He’s played by 24-year-old actor Jacob Elordi, who was born on June 26, 1997. Nate is an imposing figure for those on Euphoria, and when we first met him, Jules instantly held her own against him and was the only one who seemingly would, but even then, Nate still remained the villain that fans knew him to be.

Elliot (Dominic Fike)

Making his appearance in season 2, Elliot is a “friend” of Rue and Jules, so roughly their same age. He’s played by Dominic Fike, a 26-year-old musician is from Naples, Florida who was born on December 30, 1995. His introduction into the series is clearly going to test the relationship that is building between Jules and Rue, given what we’ve seen.

Maddy (Alexa Demie)

It is unclear how old Maddy is. She’s an upperclassman but we’re not sure if she’s an 11th or a 12th grader. Distractify lists her as 17, so the same age as Rue. Played by Alexa Demie, she is the oldest of the teenage characters, having just turned 32. Born on December 11, 1990, Demie brings to life the complicated Maddy, who is in a relationship with Nate despite the two of them constantly using their jealousy against each other.

Cassie (Sydney Sweeney)

Cassie is a senior who is 18 years old and the older sister to Lexi. She’s played by Sydney Sweeney, who turned 24 years old on September 12, 1997. Cassie is a fascinating character because she’s strong in certain aspects of her life and yet struggles with her own identity throughout the show thanks to her relationship to her mother.

Kat (Barbie Ferreira)

Kat, like Rue and Jules, is a junior, but that didn’t stop her from making a name for herself on porn websites after chasing her “online” fame from her fanfic writing. Played by 25-year-old Barbie Ferreira, she was born on December 14, 1996 and is an American model and actress. Her turn as Kat in Euphoria is a brilliant look into online culture and searching for a place where you belong.

BB (Sophia Rose Wilson)

Like the rest of her friend group, Barbara “BB” is a junior. According to her Instagram, she turned 18 years old back in 2019, making her 20 years old now. While BB is a fun character, she’s more of comedic relief in a lot of ways, but still, actress Sophia Rose Wilson brings her to life in a hilariously fun way.

Ashtray (Javon “Wanna” Walton)

Fez’s little brother is Ashtray, who we see dealing drugs in the first season. Javon Walton, who plays Ashtray, is 15 years old now, so we can assume he was supposed to be roughly 13/14 years old in season one. Ashtray has tattoos and is meant to seem older than he is, but there is no denying that he is a literal child. That’s the bit, despite how actually sad Ashtray and Fez’s upbringing is when we learn about them.

Lexi (Maude Apatow)

Rue’s best friend, for the most part, is Lexi. She’s also a junior and is played by Maude Apatow (the daughter of Judd Apatow and Leslie Mann) and just turned 24 years old on December 15. For many of us, we’ve seen Apatow grow up in her father’s movies with Knocked Up and This Is 40, but she’s come into her own as Lexi and shown her incredible acting abilities.

Ethan (Austin Abrams)

An 11th grader as well, Ethan is with Kat, and he is played by the charming Austin Abrams. The star of Dash & Lily, Abrams turned 26 years old on September 2 and is a wonderfully fun contrast to Barbie Ferreira’s Kat. In a show that has so many complicated characters, it is almost nice to just see Kat and Ethan’s relationship grow in the midst of everything else.

Travis (Lil Meech)

New to Euphoria is Travis, who clearly has a thing for Maddy from what we know, which is not going to bode well for him given Nate’s past. At only 20 years old, the rapper is well known and growing in his fame. Demetrius Flenory Jr., also known as Lil Meech, was born on April 22, 2000, and we can’t wait to see what he brings to Travis this season.

Chris (Algee Smith)

When we meet Chris, he’s just started a relationship with Cassie and is on his way to college, making him roughly 19 years old. He’s played by 27-year-old Algee Smith, who was born on November 7, 1994. Chris is interesting in contrast to Cassie. He starts their relationship off exceptionally rough but learns to communicate with her, and one of the most telling scenes comes early with Chris when he wants to talk about how hard school is but Cassie thinks he just wants sex.

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There are plenty of other characters out there in Euphoria (especially with adults like Colmon Domingo’s Ali and Eric Dane’s Cal Jacobs), but out of the core cast, that’s how everyone’s age matches up with their character’s age!

(image: HBO)

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HBO’s ‘Euphoria’ is more than a parent’s worst nightmare. It’s a creative triumph

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Let’s be honest: Euphoria is a parent’s worst nightmare.

Centered on a group of high school-age friends — each with their own problems handling an excess of drugs, drink and sex – HBO’s drama has drawn some fans for its unbridled party scenes and horrified some grownups with its lineup of young characters who always seem to make the worst choices.

But creator/executive producer Sam Levinson has built a storytelling style that transcends the titillation of its surface-level story, finding new ways to stitch together the tales of characters seemingly trapped in a web of tragedies and missteps.

An ensemble story focused on pain

That daring, creative vision only deepens now, as the show’s long-delayed second season takes flight on HBO – a pause only slightly alleviated by two special episodes dropped since the first season debuted in mid-2019. Though star Zendaya gets most of the attention playing Rue Bennett, a teen struggling with substance use disorder, the second season’s episodes are truly an ensemble affair – opening with the harrowing backstory of Rue’s drug dealing friend, Fezco, played by a laconic Angus Cloud.

An explosive series of flashbacks announces the start of the second season, depicting how Fezco’s grandmother, a ruthless drug dealer herself, took over raising him after shooting his father in the hips at the back of a seedy strip club. (Yes, the guy’s, um, excited private parts were shown; another way Euphoria shakes up expectations is by showing male nudity in ways even other explicit series do not.)

Much of this episode feels inspired by director Martin Scorsese’s style in crime epics like Goodfellas – perhaps because of the liberal use of classic rock hits, sweeping camera angles, quick cuts, gangster activities or the appearance of Sopranos co-star Kathrine Narducci as Fezco’s hardcore, gun-toting grandmother.

But as the ginger-haired drug dealer’s story reaches the modern day — and we see Fezco negotiating a tense drug deal with suppliers who demand he and his friends strip naked to prove they aren’t informants — Levinson’s ability to make audiences feel what the characters are experiencing is masterful and discomfiting, all at once.

The characters bring a tangle of storylines to the second season. Rue is trying desperately to convince most of her family and friends that she is sober, though she most certainly isn’t. Chief among those she’s lying to is young, transgender girl Jules Vaughn (played by Hunter Schafer); the two had planned to run away together at the end of last season until Rue balked. In the second season, they are trying to build a romantic relationship, but Rue’s barely-hidden addictions are an unspoken impediment.

/ HBO / HBO Hunter Schafer plays Jules on HBO’s Euphoria.

Meanwhile, Jacob Elordi’s toxic football star Nate is caught between on-again, off-again girlfriend Maddy Perez (Alexa Demie) and troubled blonde knockout Cassie Howard (Sydney Sweeney). Turns out, Nate’s terrible behavior is fueled by anger against his philandering dad Cal, played by Grey’s Anatomy alum Eric Dane. And Cal’s story as a tortured man struggling with his sexuality is given a breathtaking backstory in this season’s third episode that will make you rethink a character depicted as a towering jerk.

These stories and several more are told with a gutsy, explicit flair, forcing the viewer to face the brutal reality of each character’s pain, along with their poignant emotions. In particular, Rue’s struggle to deal with her desire to get high – culminating in a tour de force story focused on her character in episode five – gets at the debilitating reality of addiction in a way few other shows match.

Depictions which bring a warning

Watching this can be so unsettling that Zendaya issued a warning on social media before the show’s return Sunday, noting that Euphoria is for mature audiences and “deals with subject matter that can be triggering and difficult to watch.”

It’s tempting to turn these stories and characters into parables about the issues bedeviling Generation Z. And scolds like the Parents Television and Media Council warn about the show’s explicit content without noting it’s a series aimed at adults about youthful characters behaving terribly, showing the often-debilitating consequences they pay for the awful decisions they make.

But Levinson’s work in this second season makes the case that viewers are watching the lives of a coterie of very specific people mired in their own dysfunction and damage, each self-medicating in different ways, toward an almost universally tragic and emotional result.

That Euphoria somehow manages to make you keep caring about often-unlikeable folks on such brutal and dark journeys, is a testament to the uniquely creative voice distilled in each episode. It is thrilling, daring, disquieting and compelling – a triumph at a time when truly unique storytelling remains unsettlingly rare.