‘Euphoria,’ and How Angus Cloud’s Death Impacted Season 3

An emotional Sam Levinson talks to IndieWire about his anger over the U.S.’s fentanyl crisis and keeping Cloud's character Fez alive — fictionally, anyway.

Editor’s note: The following interview contains spoilers for “Euphoria” Season 3, Episode 1.

When Angus Cloud died on July 31, 2023, it had a profound impact on “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson, who worked hard to keep the actor sober.

“During Season 2, it’s no secret that he was struggling with addiction issues during shooting,” said Levinson on an upcoming episode of IndieWire’s Filmmaker Toolkit podcast. “ We got him into a couple of different rehab facilities, and we tried to keep him clean, and he was for periods of time.”

Levinson, whose own struggle with drug addiction was the inspiration for “Euphoria,” originally planned to give Cloud’s Fez character a bigger role in Season 3, in part to give the actor something to look forward to and motivation to stay clean. When Cloud died of an accidental overdose, due to a lethal combination of drugs — including fentanyl — grief wasn’t the only emotion that struck Levinson.

“It makes me angry because I don’t understand how we as a country allow upwards of 70,000 people to be poisoned by fentanyl a year,” said Levinson. “The year he died, that’s how many people died in the United States, and this isn’t happening in any other country. If you look at Europe in 2023, there are 153 people who died. So what’s going on here that we’re allowing this to happen?”

It’s an anger Levinson carried into the new season. When we first meet Levinson’s protagonist Rue (Zendaya), her debt to Laurie (Martha Kelly) has forced her into being a drug mule, an occupation that the “Euphoria” writer/director makes especially, potentially lethal in the age of fentanyl. Rue’s Season 3 arc is then triggered by the fentanyl death of a stripper at the Glass Slipper — which we get the sense will continue to ripple throughout the season and won’t be as easy to sweep under the rug as Rue’s new boss, Alamo (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), thinks.

“In many ways, the throughline of this [season] is about fentanyl, but it’s also about how losing people, about how death gives life its meaning, in the sense that you realize how precious our time on this Earth is,” said Levison. “The little deeds and actions and the way in which we treat one another matter deeply because it’s fleeting.”

“Euphoria” remains an extremely dark show, but Levinson said he tried to tell stories this season where hope and light could still be felt, in part as a way to honor those like Cloud who weren’t offered a second chance at life.

And as for Fez, Levinson couldn’t let the character go. Now serving time, characters hear from him in prison.

“I wanted to keep [Fez] alive in this season. I wanted to keep his spirit alive, maybe that’s due to the fact that in real life I couldn’t, but in this world that I am able to control, I can,” said Levinson. “I wanted to honor Angus, and I’m really proud of where the season goes, and what it says about life and the people that we love.”

“Euphoria” Season 3, Episode 1 aired Sunday, April 12 at 9 p.m. EST.