‘Euphoria’ on HBO Features a Scene with Almost 20 Penises — And “80 More” Were Cut

HBO has made it clear that Euphoria ain’t your mama’s teen drama, but until recently, no one knew just how risqué the series would be. The answer? Pretty freaking risqué. In Euphoria‘s second episode, a locker room scene features at least 17 penises (yes, we counted) in full view — and according to The Hollywood Reporter‘s Bryn Elise Sandberg, that’s the toned down version. THR reports that HBO execs anxious about alienating prudish viewers asked creator Sam Levinson to scale down the dongs in the shot, which he said originally included “like, 80 more” penises. “There are going to be parents who are going to be totally fucking freaked out,” said Levinson.

In Euphoria‘s second episode, viewers see athlete Nate (Jacob Elordi) in the high school locker room surrounded by naked boys. Levinson told THR that he intended the scene to be a “gender-bent homage to the famous Carrie locker room scene,” but HBO wasn’t quite feeling the iconic inspiration. Execs voiced concerns about the scene, and ultimately, Levinson decided to air an edited version of the original shot, which he said included “like, 80 more” penises. Our Meghan O’Keefe took one for the team and counted the wangs in the scene: she was able to clearly spot 17, but acknowledged that there could be a few more elusive dongs out there (THR put the penis count at “close to 30” for the entire episode).

THR reports that HBO also pushed back on Euphoria‘s opening shot, set at the time of Rue’s (Zendaya) birth. Levinson originally planned to begin the show with a moving shot that “went straight between [Rue’s] mother’s legs and into her vagina,” but the premium cabler was skeptical. “They were like, ‘Nah, you can’t open it that way,'” recalled Levinson. “I just thought, ‘It’s a battle I don’t need to fight right now.'” To appease execs, he opened with a computer-generated video of Rue in utero. As the video plays, Zendaya’s voiceover says, “I was repeatedly crushed over and over by the cruel cervix of my mother.”

Otherwise, HBO executives have been supportive of Euphoria‘s commitment to showing the edgier sides of teenage life. “We’re not trying to put out a Gossip Girl,” programming president Casey Bloys told THR. The nudity and sex that are featured, said Bloys, are intentional and well thought out. “It’s not sensational to be sensational,” he explained, adding that many of the scenes are inspired by Levinson’s own struggle with addiction. “It may seem boundary-pushing, and the idea of putting them on TV may be, but somebody lived them.”

But not everyone was as approving of the nudity. According to THR, actor Brian “Astro” Bradley, who signed on to play football player Chris McKay, backed out while shooting the pilot due to the suggestive material. Sources close to the situation claimed that Bradley was “uncomfortable shooting scenes that weren’t in the original pilot script and suggested his character would experiment with homosexuality in future episodes.” He was ultimately replaced with The Hate U Give star Algee Smith, and the pilot scenes were reshot. “Let’s just say I’m very glad that Algee is playing the character,” said Sydney Sweeney, who shared a sex scene with both men.

If you want to see what all the fuss is about, check out Euphoria this Sunday, June 16 on HBO.

Watch Euphoria on HBO