'Euphoria' Sets Ratings Record Against Super Bowl Despite Behind the Scenes Drama
The Super Bowl may be one of America's favorite events, but the kids at Euphoria high school are putting up quite a fight. The HBO Max drama has become a must-watch show in its second season, and it has the viewership numbers and social media influence to prove it. The sixth episode of the season, "A Thousand Trees Of Blood," aired on Super Bowl Sunday and it had a whopping 5.1 million viewers.
The series was recently picked up for a third season, and the season has built up some terrifying stakes for Zendaya's Rue. The unbearable tension likely drove the high viewership, and Euphoria was even the second most discussed thing on social media after the Super Bowl last Sunday. Hitting Twitter for the hot takes and memes has become as much of an event as watching the actual show.
This success may have taken a toll behind the scenes, though. The Daily Beast released an article this week highlighting the rumors of drama offscreen on the set of Euphoria, specifically that showrunner and director Sam Levinson butted heads with actress Barbie Ferreira, who was displeased with some of the choices made with her character Kat In the second season. Apparently, the incident escalated to the point of Ferreira storming off the set, and some have even speculated that her role was largely cut down in the latest season as retaliation.
Ferreira hasn't discussed the disagreements publicly. "Kat's journey this season is a little more internal and a little mysterious to the audience," she told The Cut. "She is secretly going through a lot of existential crises. She loses her marbles a little bit—just like everyone else in this season. The theme is everyone's gone a little crazy."
Levinson's haphazard directorial style and insanely long shooting days have also been discussed, with actor Jacob Elordi explaining that the New Year's Eve party in the premiere was particularly brutal to shoot. "The thing is, we do it for so long," he said. "We shot that party for over a week, so very quickly it's like being in Hell. It's like being in a party that you don't want to be in. At all. And you can't wait [to leave]."
Several actresses, including Sydney Sweeney, Minka Kelly, and Chloe Cherry have also said that they pushed back against unnecessary nude scenes, although Levinson was said to be very amenable in every situation. Making television can be a tricky business, but Euphoria seems especially messy.
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