A new Euphoria Season 3 cast graphic excluded big names like Zendaya and Sydney Sweeney, causing mass confusion online. The upcoming third season of the hit HBO drama is set to come to the premium cable network (and HBO Max) in Spring 2026, telling a new post-high school story centered on its previously teenage cast. This 'three-years-later' branding of the new season has had fans worried about whether their favorite actors/characters would make the jump into the show's next season.
These worries were amplified even further, as a new cast announcement for the upcoming HBO series had fans racing to see whether names like Zendaya had been cut from the show. As Euphoria Season 3 announced its Spring 2026 release, it also debuted a social graphic detailing several new and returning cast members set to appear in the show.
The "Returning Cast" section, in particular, caused uproar. While it detailed eight returning names (like Dominic Fike, Nika King, and Melvin Bonez Estes) set to play a part in the Euphoria story once again, some took this to mean that these were the only returning actors coming back for Season 3.
Confusion was so widespread that the graphic was hit with a community note on X, explaining that "it's already been confirmed Zendaya, [Hunter] Schafer...and other main cast members would return."
Instead, this list of "Returning Cast" included names that had not been previously confirmed to be part of Season 3, in addition to those already announced by HBO. The list of returning cast that had previously been announced for Euphoria Season 3 is as follows (read more about the Euphoria Season 3 cast here):
- Zendaya
- Jacob Elordi
- Sydney Sweeney
- Hunter Schafer
- Alexa Demie
- Maude Apatow
- Eric Dane
- Colman Domingo
- Chloe Cherry
- Martha Kelly
After several years, and worries the show may be outright cancelled, Euphoria Season 3 is finally set to debut sometime in Spring 2026. The hit HBO drama follows the R-rated exploits of several teenagers as they navigate the complicated ups and downs of modern-day high school. Season 3, however, will abandon this high school story, taking place three years after the events of the show's last season.
What To Expect from Euphoria Season 3
While Euphoria Season 3 will surely feature the same edge-of-your-seat drama of the first two seasons, it will look a little different. It has been revealed that this will be the first season of the hit series to take place post-high school for its main cast.
That means instead of high school parties and skipping class, the series will center on its central characters as they try to figure out life in their early twenties. This will likely present its own unique set of challenges for each of the show's primary personalities.
For someone like Zendaya's Rue, this post-high school life could either be exactly what she needs or the absolute worst thing possible. Since Season 1, Rue has been a recovering addict, dipping back into illicit substances here and there over the show's 18 episodes to this point. Perhaps, after leaving high school, Rue will finally kick the habit once and for all, but I wouldn't bet on it.
Other narratives the series will seemingly explore include what young love can look like post-graduation, with teases of a wedding between Sydney Sweeney's Cassie and Jacob Elordi's Nate having made their way online during production.
It is unclear if the pair is actually getting married in the new season, or if it is some otherworldly vision (of which there have been plenty in the series thus far), but it could set up a massive set piece at the heart of the series' next batch of episodes.
