FINDING LIGHT IN THE HEART OF DARKNESS

‘Euphoria’ offers an unflinching examination of Gen Z ennui in an increasingly tumultuous world. By Tymon Smith

In 2019, creator and director Sam Levinson’s dark (definitely not for teenagers) HBO drama Euphoria, about the pressures, addictions, sex lives and nasty underbelly of suburban American Gen Z high school life, shocked many. But it found a loyal legion of young fans online and catapulted its star — former Disney Channel child star and wannabe pop star Zendaya — into the stratosphere.

She won a Primetime Emmy Award for best actress in a drama for her performance as the show’s drug-addled, troubled and deeply unreliable narrator

Rue Bennett, the youngest woman to ever achieve that honour.

Adapted from an Israeli show of the same name, Levinson’s version was far more bleak and emotionally draining. It drew on his own experiences with addiction. As the youngest son of legendary Hollywood director Barry Levinson and production designer Diana Rhodes, the young Sam was introduced to the movie business at a young age but spent most of his teenage years battling his addiction to drugs. His struggle finally landed him in rehab at the age of 19, where he cleaned up his act and began to embrace his destiny as a writer and director.

The planned second season of Euphoria was delayed by the Covid pandemic. After two standalone bridge episodes focusing on Zendaya’s character, Rue, and transgender actor Hunter Schafer’s character, Jules, which were released early last year, the second season is finally here. This time, true to the promise of its stars and creator, things get even darker, more brutal and emotionally twisty, with some memorable new characters and a lot of darkly funny and engaging backstories for previous characters — all offering plenty of what the young fans and older viewers have come to appreciate, if not always stomach, about its unflinching examination of Gen Z ennui in the increasingly

tumultuous 21st century.

“We were supposed to shoot this season a couple of years ago,” says Zendaya. “It was a very different season that time around. I’m grateful in retrospect for the time we had as the cast to get out of our heads a bit. I think we were worried, always comparing ourselves to the first season and trying to chase it, trying too hard in general. It didn’t flow and it felt like we were putting a lot of pressure on ourselves. We weren’t creating a diamond, it was stressing us out. The time away allowed us to be more outside of the story, which helped to get inside it, if that makes sense.”

Zendaya says that one of the things that helps her get through the emotionally gruelling requirements of the show and the cruel twists of fate that Levinson’s writing visits on her character, is to always remember that the character is a version of Levinson and “look at him now, look at what he was able to achieve, look at what he was able to do with that pain, with the things that, at the time, he couldn’t articulate and understand. It became something that people could connect to. So I always say that if he can do it then Rue will be OK.”

Zendaya and the rest of the cast spent eight months of long days shooting the eight episodes of Euphoria’s second season but, she says, it was worth it because the show is for anyone who connects to it on an emotional level — obviously not children. “The greatest privilege has been the opportunity to meet people that have shared with me their point of connection with Rue, whether that be their journey to sobriety or some emotional disorders similar to the ones she has. That’s been really special to me.”

That’s a sentiment echoed by Angus Cloud, who plays Fezco, Rue’s reluctant drug dealer and the closest thing the series has to a moral centre. His backstory and journey are significantly filled in over the course of this season. Cloud says that while not every kid is going to be “wilding out” like the ones on the show, the things that it shows about Gen Z life are all out there. “It’s concerning to every parent, so I think it’s important for parents to watch the show. Older kids should watch it too because they can learn what not to do and see that they’re not struggling alone — everyone goes through some version of these struggles.”

Maude Apatow, daughter of director Judd Apatow and actress Leslie Mann, plays

Rue’s oldest but estranged friend Lexi, who, this season, has her own journey of selfdiscovery and creative awakening. She says that everything was new the first season. “We didn’t know each other very well, we didn’t know the crew, we didn’t know if people were going to like the show. Coming back after the show has been so well received was really nice. We felt more comfortable around each other and settled in. We shoot crazy hours and a lot of months. We knew what we were in for this time around, more than we did last season.”

She hopes that fans will see the work that’s gone into this season to show, in terms of Lexi and Rue’s relationship, how you can grow up with someone and love them but then drift apart. “But you’re always there for each other. For a lot of us, our characters have been friends since they were kids and this season does a good job of showing how, even though they’re growing apart, they still love each other.”

Nika King, who stars as Rue’s longsuffering but fiercely devoted mother Leslie, says that darkness is just the absence of light and even though the show is dark, you have glimmers of hope. “I want the audience to not only focus on the darkness but see the light in each episode. Sam has a way of crafting these stories where you understand that.”

King’s co-star Storm Reid, who plays Rue’s equally beleaguered younger sister Gia, agrees and believes that while the show is dark, the world is dark. “We’re all trying to be a light in the midst of the darkness that’s going on. Internally and then externally in how we represent ourselves in the world and move through the world. That’s how you have to look at it in

Euphoria and beyond — you have to be a light not only for others but for yourself. That’s the message at the heart of Euphoria

— trying to be the light in the midst of all these crazy things happening.”

As to Euphoria’s critical and popular success, that has pushed its star onto the international stage as a celebrity, spokesperson and activist for her generation in the real world, Colman Domingo, who portrays Rue’s unofficial sponsor Ali, believes that it’s a good thing. He says what he loves about Zendaya and the young people he knows is that they’re concerned with more than just being entertainers.

“They’re in tune with the world and they understand their position and their purpose. That’s something I greatly admire, especially with young kids who have a lot of influence. They don’t just use their influence for selfish reasons. They understand the effect they have on the world. I look up to them. It sounds so clichéd, but I really think the future is in their hands and they must build the world they want to live in. Zendaya is deconstructing a lot of things — expected tropes, being a woman, being a woman of colour, a biracial woman — there are so many preconceptions she’s smashing and that’s what I admire about her. I want young women like Zendaya to lead the world.” ‘Euphoria’ season two is now on Showmax. New episodes are added weekly.

Things get even darker, more brutal, emotionally twisty, with memorable new characters and a lot of darkly funny and engaging backstories