Euphoria Star Chloe Cherry's Disgusting Drug Scene Earns Crew Applause
Euphoria star Chloe Cherry has revealed that filming a tense drug-smuggling scene for the show's third season was so disgusting that the crew gave her a standing ovation for her performance. The popular HBO Max series returned earlier this month after a four-year hiatus, with its highly-anticipated new season featuring a five-year time jump following the characters' high school graduation.
A Gruelling Scene That Demanded Realism
In the first episode, viewers are introduced to a gritty new drug-smuggling storyline where Zendaya's character Rue is seen attempting to swallow small bags of a white powder substance to smuggle them across the American border. A shocking montage shows her struggling before Chloe Cherry's character Faye is brought in to help.
The tense scene depicts both characters gagging and sometimes vomiting as they try to swallow all the golf-ball-sized bags left by a gang. Chloe Cherry explained that director Sam Levinson specifically instructed her to amplify the disgust to realistically portray swallowing balloons filled with fentanyl.
'Sam came up to me and said, "I need this scene to really show how disgusting it would actually be if you were to swallow balloons filled with fentanyl and how disgusted you would actually be,"' Cherry told Metro. 'He was like, "I really, really, really, really, really need you to turn the disgust up in this scene," and I was like, all right, I’m gonna give it a go.'
Crew Reaction and Fan Backlash
Cherry's commitment paid off, with the entire crew applauding when filming stopped. 'I just managed to pull it off… and when we stopped shooting, everybody clapped. I’m not even kidding, the whole crew clapped for me. They were so amazed at how disgusting I made that scene,' she revealed.
However, the shocking scenes have been met with mixed reviews from fans. Many have taken to social media to criticise the season, labelling it a 'humiliation ritual' for its stars. Comments ranged from 'EWWWWW????? THE DOG WHAT' to 'This is so gross', with some viewers drawing comparisons to Breaking Bad and Narcos.
Controversial Storylines and Character Developments
The premiere episode also introduced Sydney Sweeney's character Cassie in a controversial subplot. Cassie is seen living in a large suburban home with fiancé Nate, played by Jacob Elordi, and posing in a brown corset with doggy ears, a collar, and a leash for photos she plans to upload to social media as part of a money-making scheme.
When Nate walks in on her, a heated exchange ensues where he criticises her actions, calling her a 'prostitute', while she defends herself by saying she's simply 'growing her following'. The scene ends with Nate pulling her closer by the leash and calling her a 'bad dog', to which she replies, 'Woof woof'.
Expanded Plot and New Challenges
The episode kicks off with Zendaya's Rue driving through the desert in Chihuahua, Mexico, with a duffle bag of drugs in the trunk. After navigating various obstacles, including getting her car stuck on a fence, she delivers the drugs to a strip club owner named Alamo. A tense confrontation reveals the drugs are laced with fentanyl, leading to an overdosing stripper and a dramatic test of faith where Alamo shoots an apple off Rue's head.
Meanwhile, Nate is now running his father Cal's business, following the character's passing in the show due to ALS. The episode also touches on Lexi's life in Los Angeles, working on a studio for a nighttime soap opera, and reveals that Fez is serving 30 years in prison.
Season Reception and Future
Ahead of its premiere, the third season faced criticism in early reviews, being labelled an 'unhindered disaster' yet 'pretty uneventful'. It held a 46% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes before the first episode aired. Critics like Lauren Samer from the New York Post described it as 'Breaking Bad meets Looney Tunes', while the BBC's Caryn James gave the first three episodes two out of five stars, noting the show has 'very little to say'.
During a recent appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show, Zendaya hinted that this might be the final season, stating, 'I think so, yeah,' when asked if season three is the last. The season, which contains eight episodes airing weekly until May 31, is available to stream on HBO Max and NOW in the UK.
