The eagerly anticipated third season of Euphoria has finally premiered, with new episodes hitting the 2026 TV calendar every Sunday night. However, its return hasn't come without some bumps in the road. Specifically, there have been rumors of a rift between Sydney Sweeney and Zendaya, as well as controversy surrounding Sweeney's character, Cassie. Nevertheless, if Sweeney's Instagram post is any indication, the show's popularity is through the roof.
Sweeney shared a Euphoria-related headline on her Instagram Stories that claims the Season 3 premiere surpassed 20 million viewers worldwide. The post from Warner Bros., featuring an image of fellow Euphoria star Alexa Demie, claims that the premiere numbers are 68% higher than those of Season 2. WB's original post says that Episode 2 matched the premiere, drawing in approximately 8.5 million viewers in the United States in its first three days. That's quite impressive!
It's no surprise that people are tuning in. In addition to those who watched the first two seasons in real-time, the show had four full years to encourage anyone with an HBO Max subscription to catch up before its (possible) final season. So although the Euphoria Season 3 reviews were harsher than expected, I can see viewers sticking with it, just to see it through.
Even before people started complaining about the season's big changes, rumors were circulating about a rift between Zendaya and Sydney Sweeney—two of the series' biggest stars. A video of the cast was shared on social media that featured the two actresses mentioned above, as well as Hunter Schafer, Alexa Demie, and Maude Apatow. However, when the ladies gathered for a group shot, Sydney Sweeney was not there, fueling rumors from the past that differing political views have caused a "bitter feud" between her and the Dune actress. They also didn't pose together at the premiere, with sources alleging it would be bad optics for Zendaya.
Then there's the on-screen drama that has apparently been turning some fans away—and inspiring real-life OnlyFans stars to speak out. Part of Sydney Sweeney's character's story is that she starts an OF account, where she dresses up as a baby and sucks on a pacifier. The UK, where OnlyFans was founded, is actually looking into laws that would criminalize such controversial "age play," but even without a ban in place, many viewers didn't like it.
Euphoria has always been controversial, freaking parents out with all of those penises, so the fact that some stories are rubbing fans the wrong way is nothing new. One has to wonder if a little bit of controversy might actually help the HBO drama to maintain those impressive premiere numbers. Will you be tuning in?
New episodes of Euphoria Season 3 air at 9 p.m. ET Sundays on HBO and streaming simultaneously on HBO Max.
