After years of delays and cancelation rumors, HBO has just dropped the first look at Euphoria Season 3. The news comes three years after the Euphoria Season 2 finale in February 2022, which left the fans with many burning questions. Production for the upcoming season of the teen drama began in early 2025, and a newly released still from one of the episodes shows Zendaya stepping back into the role of Rue.

As reported by Variety, most of the main cast of Euphoria will return for Season 3, except for Barbie Ferreira who announced her exit back in 2022. Angus Cloud’s tragic passing away in July 2023 also leaves his character Fez’s fate uncertain. However, the network has confirmed that the upcoming season will feature 8 episodes. The show is also steering away from creator Sam Levinson’s original idea of a five-year jump which would feature Rue working as a private investigator.

In an earlier interview with Variety, Casey Bloys, CEO of HBO, talked about how much attention the show has gotten since the premiere of Season 2. “It has created some genuine movie stars,” added Bloys while talking about Jacob Elordi and his success in films such as Saltburn and Priscilla along with Zendaya’s role in the Dune franchise. Bloys added that while a lot of the main cast is working on other projects, they are all returning to film Season 3.

‘Euphoria’ Season 3 Was Not Delayed Because of Zendaya’s Schedule

Contrary to popular belief, Zendaya’s busy schedule is not the reason why Euphoria Season 3 was delayed for so long. HBO had originally planned for a 2025 release, but with the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes in 2023, production for Euphoria Season 3 came to a halt. Not to mention that during this time, Levinson was working on The Weeknd starrer The Idol which led to scheduling conflicts.

In November 2023, Zendaya confirmed that production for the upcoming season was slated for January 2025. Back then, the actress revealed that she hadn’t seen the scripts, but was excited to see where the story was headed. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Zendaya shared that despite her ongoing film projects, her schedule was open for Euphoria. In fact, she had been waiting on an update from HBO just like everyone else.

The former Disney star revealed that she was going to start filming another project before Euphoria Season 3. According to the actress, she felt a bit rusty after not having been on a set for so long. “Can I even do this anymore? I don’t know,” she confessed. As reported by US Weekly, HBO allowed the in-demand cast of the show, including Zendaya, Jacob, and Sydney Sweeney to take on other projects during the long delay.

Euphoria Season 3 is slated for release in 2026. However, an exact date has not been announced. Previous seasons of the show are currently streaming on Max.

via Collider