{"id":232794,"date":"2026-04-05T18:05:03","date_gmt":"2026-04-05T18:05:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/05\/theres-only-1-drama-show-you-need-to-watch-in-april-and-the-last-season-is-about-to-drop\/"},"modified":"2026-04-05T18:05:03","modified_gmt":"2026-04-05T18:05:03","slug":"theres-only-1-drama-show-you-need-to-watch-in-april-and-the-last-season-is-about-to-drop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2026\/04\/05\/theres-only-1-drama-show-you-need-to-watch-in-april-and-the-last-season-is-about-to-drop\/","title":{"rendered":"There\u2019s Only 1 Drama Show You Need to Watch in April \u2014 and the Last Season Is About to Drop"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p>This month, the season 3 premiere of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/shows\/euphoria\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>Euphoria<\/em><\/a> finally debuts on HBO and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/media-network\/hbo-max\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">HBO Max<\/a> after a too-long five-year hiatus.<\/p>\n<p>If you still haven\u2019t caught up on the provocative, highly memeable show, you\u2019ve still got time to binge all sixteen of its provocative episodes.<\/p>\n<p>For the uninformed, the HBO show follows the teenagers at East Highland High School in California, as they navigate sex, drugs, alcohol, friendship, cheating, betrayal and not much else.<\/p>\n<p>The show stars <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/zendaya-coleman\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Zendaya<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/sydney-sweeney\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Sydney Sweeney<\/strong><\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/jacob-elordi\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Jacob Elordi<\/strong><\/a> and <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/hunter-schafer\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Hunter Schafer<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/watch-with-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Watch With Us<\/a> explains why you have to check out this controversial pop culture phenomenon before it concludes this spring.<\/p>\n<div class=\"link-related article link-related__with-thumb\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"article__thumbnail related-ab-test\" href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/entertainment\/news\/is-euphoria-ending-agent-on-zendaya-sydney-sweeney-salary-talks\/\" target=\"\" data-source=\"01\" rel=\"noopener\"><\/p>\n<figure class=\"article__figure\">\n<div style=\"padding-bottom:56.25%;\" class=\"ratio-based-placeholder\"><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"article__content\">\n<h3 class=\"article__title\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"article__title-link related-ab-test\" href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/entertainment\/news\/is-euphoria-ending-agent-on-zendaya-sydney-sweeney-salary-talks\/\" target=\"\" data-source=\"01\" rel=\"noopener\"><br \/>\n    <span class=\"related-badge\">Related: <\/span><span class=\"related-title\">Why Million-Dollar Salary Demands Could End \u2018Euphoria\u2019<\/span><\/a><br \/>\n\t\t<\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>\n\t\t\tHas the delay to Euphoria\u2019s third season given the show\u2019s stars Sydney Sweeney, Zendaya and Jacob Elordi a get-out-of-jail-free card? And will it spell the end of the beloved \u2014 but beleaguered \u2014 hit show? When HBO pulled the plug on production of Euphoria\u2019s third season earlier this week, citing disagreements over the direction the [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<h2>The Plotlines Are Absurd, Obscene \u2014 and Addictive<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Euphoria Season 1 Trailer | Rotten Tomatoes TV\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/UR4Pxgnm-GA?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>The central narrative of <em>Euphoria<\/em> is driven by Rue (Zendaya), a teenage drug addict who\u2019s been struggling with addiction since the death of her father from cancer. Season 1 kicks off with Rue\u2019s recent release from rehab, and she makes it clear to the audience, as our omniscient narrator, that she has no plans of staying clean. While Rue dips her toes back into opiate abuse, she becomes head-over-heels infatuated with new student Jules (Schafer), a trans girl who frequents one-night stands with older men \u2014 including the father (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/eric-dane\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Eric Dane<\/strong><\/a>) of East Highland\u2019s football star, Nate Jacobs (Elordi).<\/p>\n<p>Nate and Maddie Perez (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/alexa-demie\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Alexa Demie<\/strong><\/a>) are in an emotionally abusive relationship, while Maddie\u2019s best friend, the highly sexual and emotional Cassie Howard (Sydney Sweeney), pursues a relationship with college freshman Chris McKay (<strong>Algee Smith<\/strong>). Their other friend, Kat Hernandez (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/stylish\/news\/euphorias-barbie-ferreira-reacts-to-vs-fashion-show-look-excl\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Barbie Ferreira<\/strong><\/a>), decides to embrace body positivity and her sexuality by becoming a camgirl. Various plot threads in season 1 of <em>Euphoria<\/em> involve: micro-penises, sexual blackmail, domestic abuse, pedophilia, fentanyl abuse, public masturbation, kidney infections and murder, and that isn\u2019t even the half of it. Criticisms against\u00a0<em>Euphoria<\/em> have concerned such explicitly gratuitous narratives, but one thing will always be true: the people want to watch them.<\/p>\n<h2>\u2018Euphoria\u2019 Launched the Careers of 2026\u2019s Leading Stars<\/h2>\n<figure id=\"attachment_4298252\" style=\"width: 900px;\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\">\n<div class=\"ratio-based-placeholder\" style=\"padding-bottom:66.285714285714%;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-large wp-image-4298252\" src=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=1000&amp;quality=70&amp;strip=all\" alt=\"Hunter Schafer and Zendaya in Euphoria special episode 1\" width=\"1000\" height=\"663\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=100&amp;quality=86&amp;strip=all 100w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=200&amp;quality=55&amp;strip=all 200w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=300&amp;quality=70&amp;strip=all 300w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=400&amp;quality=55&amp;strip=all 400w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=500&amp;quality=86&amp;strip=all 500w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=600&amp;quality=40&amp;strip=all 600w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=700&amp;quality=55&amp;strip=all 700w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=800&amp;quality=55&amp;strip=all 800w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=900&amp;quality=70&amp;strip=all 900w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=1000&amp;quality=70&amp;strip=all 1000w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=1200&amp;quality=70&amp;strip=all 1200w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=1400&amp;quality=86&amp;strip=all 1400w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=1600&amp;quality=47&amp;strip=all 1600w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=1800&amp;quality=86&amp;strip=all 1800w, https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/euphoria-s2-zendaya-schafer.jpg?w=1920&amp;quality=86&amp;strip=all 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 680px) calc(100vw - 6em), (max-width: 1000px) 80vw, 1000px\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"wp-caption-text\"><span class=\"caption\"><br \/>\n Hunter Schafer and Zendaya in Euphoria special episode 1.<\/span> <span class=\"credit\">Eddy Chen \/ \u00a9HBO \/ Courtesy Everett Collection<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><em>Euphoria<\/em> served as the jumping-off point for much of its core cast. While Zendaya was probably the biggest name of the high school characters at the time, she has since been matched by Elordi, Sweeney and Schafer. From his imposing, genuinely terrifying performance as Nate Jacobs, Elordi was cast in <em>Deep Water<\/em> opposite <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/ana-de-armas\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Ana De Armas<\/strong><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/ben-affleck\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Ben Affleck<\/strong><\/a>, indie film <em>The Sweet East<\/em> and eventually as\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/elvis-presley\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Elvis Presley<\/strong><\/a> in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrities\/sofia-coppola\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><strong>Sofia Coppola<\/strong><\/a>\u2018s <em>Priscilla.\u00a0<\/em>While post-<em>Priscilla<\/em> Elordi made his mark in\u00a0<em>Saltburn, Oh, Canada<\/em> and\u00a0<em>On Swift Horses<\/em>, it was on the set of <em>Priscilla<\/em> that Elordi was recommended to <strong>Guillermo del Toro<\/strong> to take on his Academy Award-nominated performance as Frankenstein\u2019s Monster.<\/p>\n<p>Sweeney, too, has had quite a buzzy post-<em>Euphoria\u00a0<\/em>career (and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/celebrity-news\/news\/sydney-sweeney-breaks-silence-over-jeans-campaign-backlash\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">not always for the best reasons<\/a>), starring in movies like\u00a0<em>The Housemaid, Immaculate, Madame Web<\/em> and\u00a0<em>Anyone But You.\u00a0<\/em>Meanwhile, Schafer has become a major face for transgender representation in Hollywood, appearing in <em>The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds &amp; Snakes<\/em>, <em>Cuckoo<\/em> and <em>Kinds of Kindness.<\/em> It\u2019s undeniable that whatever you think of the quality of\u00a0<em>Euphoria,\u00a0<\/em>it served as a crucial breeding ground for top young Hollywood talent doing some of their best work. And while well-known, Zendaya further proved her acting prowess beyond her Disney Channel years \u2014 for her performance as Rue, she clinched two Primetime Emmys and a Golden Globe.<\/p>\n<h2>The Filmmaking Is Highly Stylized and Ambitious<\/h2>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Euphoria Season 3 | Trailer 2 | HBO Max\" width=\"696\" height=\"392\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/r3Z4tGN0i2I?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<div id=\"news-block\">\n<div class=\"newsletter-form  \">\n\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/themes\/us-weekly\/assets\/img\/newsletter-bg-narrow.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"newsletter-form__background background-narrow\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><br \/>\n\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/wp-content\/themes\/us-weekly\/assets\/img\/newsletter-bg-wide.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"newsletter-form__background background-wide\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/p>\n<div class=\"newsletter-signup__success\" aria-live=\"polite\">\n<h3>Thank You!<\/h3>\n<p>You have successfully subscribed.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<p>Say what you will about\u00a0<em>Euphoria<\/em> show runner, creator and writer <strong>Sam Levinson<\/strong>\u2018s screenwriting abilities, the man knows how to keep things unique with the camera and editing. The series employs numerous creative gimmicks: fourth wall-breaking sequences, animated sequences, dance numbers, dream sequences and more. Ultimately, the creatives behind the show go out of their way to make <em>Euphoria<\/em> hyper-stylized in just about every filmmaking aspect, from the directing and costume design to the sets and editing. The show is meant to evoke the emotional reality of the characters\u2019 inner perspectives, which doesn\u2019t necessarily reflect objective reality.<\/p>\n<p>While the first season was shot on an Arri Alexa 65 digital camera, the second season and the two specials were shot on 35mm Kodak film stock, giving the visual quality a nostalgic texture. To communicate the emotional states of the characters, lighting is very intentionally deployed, with blues and purples conjuring a frantic atmosphere, and greens and yellows evoking distress. Energetic camera movements create a kinetic fluidity to the show through frequent whip pans and tracking shots. And, of course, the costume design is one of the most memorable aspects of the filmmaking, with highly meticulous outfits catered to the personalities of each character \u2014 in particular, Maddie\u2019s detailed and eccentric makeup designs are to die for.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/play.hbomax.com\/show\/4ffd33c9-e0d6-4cd6-bd13-34c266c79be0\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Stream\u00a0<em>Euphoria\u00a0<\/em>now on HBO Max.<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usmagazine.com\/entertainment\/news\/if-you-have-to-watch-1-drama-show-this-april-2026-stream-this-1-now\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>This month, the season 3 premiere of Euphoria finally debuts on HBO and HBO Max after a too-long five-year hiatus. If you still haven\u2019t caught up on the provocative, highly memeable show, you\u2019ve still got time to binge all sixteen of its provocative episodes. For the uninformed, the HBO show follows the teenagers at East [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":232797,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-232794","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-entertainment"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232794","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=232794"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/232794\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/232797"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=232794"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=232794"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=232794"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}