Rue’s (Zendaya) addiction journey in “Euphoria”‘s second season got off to a pretty rocky start, but the finale offered viewers a glimmer of hope for what could be her redemption next season. Some of Rue’s darkest moments took place in season two, which led to her relapsing and having an emotional intervention. But hitting rock bottom offered a turning point that helped curb her drug use.
“There’s a dark place that hits right in the middle of the season. And it was painful for everyone involved with making it,” Zendaya told Entertainment Tonight. “I know it was painful for me and I think it got to the point of, ‘We can’t leave her here. This can’t be the end of her story. There has to be some hope at the end of this. Something beautiful at the end of all this pain.'”
“There has to be some hope at the end of this. Something beautiful at the end of all this pain.”
At the beginning of season two, Zendaya’s character made it clear that she had “no intentions of staying clean,” but the finale reveals that she eventually gets sober and remains that way through the rest of the year. Halfway through the season, Zendaya shared a powerful message on Instagram in defense of Rue, telling viewers that she still “has a redemptive quality” in her that leaves hope for the future. So looking ahead, the actor hopes that season three leaves the door open for the show to follow the story of a sober Rue. “I think that’s what we need. I think that’s what the world needs,” Zendaya continued in her Entertainment Tonight interview. “So, if you can hold onto that, if you can bear with her through those painful moments, if you can still root for her, then maybe there is some hope at the end.”
Though “Euphoria”‘s season two finale hints at what may lie ahead for Zendaya’s character, other cast members are still clueless as to what the story will be next season. And since season two delivered so many shocking turn of events, anything is possible next season. “Given the change in the second season, I’d imagine [season 3] would just be a complete shock again,” said Jacob Elori to Entertainment Tonight. “It could just be like a completely new show again.” Considering how long it took for season two to arrive, it’s likely that “Euphoria” won’t return until 2024 so we’ll be waiting for confirmation of its plot until then.