Euphoria‘s long-awaited return has been met with major backlash due to numerous explicit — and controversial — scenes.
The HBO series, which premiered in 2019, has always been known to push boundaries while following teenager Rue’s (Zendaya) attempt to remain sober after struggling with addiction.
While the first two seasons were set in high school, Euphoria ultimately introduced a time jump, allowing season 3 to check in on the main characters as adults. But just because everyone got older didn’t mean they were making better decisions — with season 3 introducing topics such as drug smuggling, sexual assault and more dangerous situations.
Viewers, meanwhile, have blasted the show for pushing boundaries episode to episode with racy — and sometimes triggering — moments. Creator Sam Levinson has stood by his vision for the show despite possible offscreen criticism.
‘Euphoria’ Cast: See the HBO Show’s Stars Then and Now
“We have a motto of: Evolve or die,” he told The Hollywood Reporter in April. “We wanted to make sure we were changing things up.”
He continued: “We’re seeing them out in the world, in the wider world, and allowing the actors to communicate emotionally through the performance as opposed to in the past, when we did it moreso through camera. We wanted to see them fending for themselves.”
Keep scrolling for a guide to every controversial season 3 scene that wasn’t received well:
The Drug Smuggling Scenes
In the season 3 premiere, Rue was reintroduced after a five-year time jump, which showed her new life as a drug mule. A scene minutes into the premiere depicted Rue and Faye (Chloe Cherry) using lube to swallow large quantities of balloons filled with drugs.
They then had to smuggle the balloons from Mexico to the United States without getting caught. Rue made it home just in time to poop out the balloons, but Faye had “an accident” and feces were seen running down her leg before a dog tried to lick some of it off.
Everything the ‘Euphoria’ Cast Has Said About the Show’s Onscreen Nudity
Cassie’s OnlyFans Arc
Many viewers weren’t thrilled by Cassie’s entire arc being an attempt to find success on OnlyFans with sexual photoshoots. From topless photos to pretending to be a baby or a dog, Sydney Sweeney’s scenes verged too close to cringe for some. OnlyFans creators, meanwhile, weren’t thrilled with how their line of work was portrayed on screen.
The Nazi Memorabilia
While Faye’s love interest Wayne (Toby Wallace) wasn’t meant to be a good guy, the numerous Nazi flags and memorabilia featured in his scenes threw viewers off.
Anna Van Patten’s Introduction as Kitty
After joining the strip club as a new dancer, Euphoria pushed Kitty’s story line along by having Rue watch her have sex with multiple men in a graphic group sex scene. While Kitty agreed to the arrangement, she had to take ketamine beforehand and was visibly shaken up after the sexual encounter, which hinted at her being painfully penetrated with a champagne bottle as well.
Maddy and Alamo’s Relationship
Maddy and Alamo formed a bond that turned sinister when she had to ask for money when Cassie found out that Nate only had 72 hours to live.
A scene then showed Alamo making Maddy put on a bathing suit to get in the hot tub with him. He ultimately agreed to help Maddy get the $1 million needed to save Nate and the scene cut off. Viewers, meanwhile, wondered if the scene hinted at Maddy having to sleep with Alamo to secure the deal but that wasn’t clarified.
