‘Euphoria’ Season 2 Ending, Explained

Another season of Euphoria has officially come to an end. The second season of Sam Levinson’s hit HBO series was a smash hit, with Variety recently reporting that viewership for the show rose 100% from the first season.

With as much controversy and glitter as ever, Season 2 found Rue navigating a drug relapse, interesting love triangles developed and plenty of ’90s bops played. But how did it all shake out? Here’s everything to know about the show’s dramatic season finale, and what to expect from Season 3:

WHAT HAPPENS IN THE END OF EUPHORIA SEASON 2?

First off: Poor Fezco (Angus Cloud). Before he can head to Lexi’s (Maude Apatow) play, Faye’s (Chloe Cherry) boyfriend Custer (Tyler Chase) attempts to get Fez and Ashtray (Javon Walton) to confess to Mouse’s murder. Although Faye attempts to convince him that terrifying dealer Laurie is the murderer, the cops are already on their way. Ash impulsively stabs Custer in the throat, and engages in a Scarface-style shoot-off that leaves Fez wounded and Ash dead.

Meanwhile, another standoff unfolds at Euphoria high school. Fresh off her breakup with Nate (Jacob Elordi), Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) interrupts Lexi’s play to berate her sister for dramatizing her life (and traumatic carousel orgasm) for the whole school to see.

Amidst the chaos, Maddy (Alexa Demie) hauls her former best friend offstage and finally confronts her face to face… before slamming her against a brick wall. Later, the friend group recuperates in the school bathroom, as Maddy ominously tells Cassie, “Don’t worry. This is just the beginning.”

But Nate isn’t currently thinking about Cassie at all. After storming out of the play, he stops by Cal’s (Eric Dane) shop to confront his dad over leaving the family. “You don’t get to ruin our lives and just move on,” Nate says, revealing a USB stick with evidence of Cal’s secret trysts as the police arrive to arrest his father.

Luckily, the finale ends on a more positive note for Rue herself. She makes amends with Jules (Hunter Schafer) and Elliot (Dominic Fike), who sings to her for roughly half of the finale. Rue also reunites with her childhood best friend Lexi, as the two bond over losing their fathers. As she heads out of the school auditorium, Rue reveals that she stayed clean for the rest of the school year. Will Laurie come after her for that lost drug money? Perhaps, but for now, things are looking up.

WHAT DOES THE ENDING OF EUPHORIA SEASON 2 MEAN?

The Euphoria finale may have ended on an unusually uplifting note, but it also left behind plenty of lingering threads to explore in Season 3.

For starters, what will happen to Fez? Although everyone’s favorite bad boy with a heart of gold was shot, it’s hard to imagine Levinson killing such a beloved character offscreen. Whether or not Fez heads to jail in Season 3, expect to see him reeling from the weight of Ash’s death in future episode.

Maddy seems to have accepted Cassie’s betrayal, but will getting dumped finally force Cassie to interrogate her daddy issues? We can dream.

Meanwhile, hopefully Lexi and Rue’s rekindled friendship gets more screen time in Season 3. Lexi presumably blew the school’s entire budget on her play, but the younger Euphoria kids still have a year of high school left. It will be fascinating to find out whether the series features a time jump, and how Rue’s sobriety journey factors into it all. Hopefully, she never finds out what’s in Laurie’s terrifying basement.

WILL THERE BE A SEASON 3 OF EUPHORIA?

Yep! In February 2022, HBO officially renewed Euphoria for a third season. While there’s no official premiere date yet, we’ll likely have to wait a while to see those crazy kids again. Based on previous seasons, fans can expect Season 3 to premiere in mid-to-late 2023 or even early 2024.

Where to stream Euphoria