Zendaya's Rue almost became a private detective on 'Euphoria' season 3

It’s almost embarrassing to admit how desperate we are for the third season of HBO’s Euphoria, but the most recent update has left us a little broken as the future of the show currently remains uncertain.

HBO has officially delayed the filming of season three, which was initially set to start recording this spring. That said, an HBO spokesperson told Variety, “HBO and Sam Levinson remain committed to making an exceptional third season. In the interim, we are allowing our in-demand cast to pursue other opportunities.”

Among said in-demand cast is Zendaya, who reprised her role as Chani in Dune: Part Two and is gearing up for her release of Luca Guadagnino’s Challengers. She might not have much power in regard to vetoing scripts, but she does serve as an executive producer for Euphoria and reportedly offered “significant input” in what happens in the third season.

According to the Variety report, HBO executives turned down the revised scripts submitted by Levinson for Euphoria season 3. The publication reported that “there was a new arc for Zendaya’s Rue, whose character in Levinson’s first pass had been relegated to the background in a somewhat surprising storyline about her working as a private detective, which HBO had immediately vetoed.”

According to sources, Levinson — who has full creative control over every aspect of the show — initially proposed his vision for the next season at the end of 2023, where he discussed a time jump five years into the future. Although his ideas were well-met and early drafts were described as “very compelling,” the WGA strike put a halt in production, but after it ended, the scripts “didn’t pass muster” with Zendaya.

Levinson was also reportedly already in overhaul mode after the passing of Angus Cloud in July 2023, as well as losing producer Kevin Turen in November. Each of them played pivotal roles in his vision for the next season, and their losses further slowed down the process.

This also led to disagreements between HBO and Levinson once updated scripts were submitted, and renegotiating cast deals with the rising stars involved has also put a damper on production.

The good news is that HBO has reportedly freed up the cast for the remainder of 2024, with a “solid plan” to begin filming for 25 weeks at the start of 2025 — so long as everyone is collectively happy with the scripts, that is.