Sydney Sweeney Scene in ‘Euphoria' S3 Sparks Backlash: ‘Humiliation Ritual'
Euphoria has made its long-awaited return following a more than five-year hiatus but the premiere of its third season has sparked backlash online.
The show has been consistently embroiled in controversy, from rumors of cast feuds to criticism over storylines. Controversy has also long swirled around the director and series creator, Sam Levinson, including over the depiction of female characters and frequent nude scenes, both in relation to Euphoriaand the 2023 show, The Idol.
Now, fans have flocked to social media to slam a scene featuring Sydney Sweeney in the new season's first episode, with one social media user branding it a “humiliation ritual.”
Newsweek has contacted a representative for Sweeney outside of regular working hours via email for comment.
Why It Matters
Euphoria first premiered in 2019 to widespread critical acclaim. The show helped to catapult the likes of Zendaya, Sydney Sweeney and Jacob Elordi to superstardom. Euphoria has won nine Emmys overall, with Zendaya having won two for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series for her portrayal of Rue Bennett.
But a series of obstacles pushed the release of the third season back, and now that it's here, the response is tepid. The Season 3 premiere is the lowest-rated episode in the show's history on IMDb, and reviews have also been negative-The Guardian called it “desperate and absolutely not worth the wait,” in a two-star review, while the season currently has a 44 percent Tomatometer score on Rotten Tomatoes. By contrast, its second season had 78 percent and its first season had 80 percent.
What To Know
Sweeney plays Cassie Howard in In Euphoria. Following a dramatic second season where her character arc involved her betraying her best friend Maddy Perez, played by Alexa Demie, and running off with her boyfriend, Nate Jacobs, played by Jacob Elordi, the third season opens with Cassie and Nate living together ahead of their upcoming nuptials.
And it's a scene that takes place in their home that has caught people's attention online.
Cassie, desperate for a lavish wedding and bored as a housewife, is posting sexual social media content. Wearing a brown puppy costume, she and Nate argue, and she proclaims that she is “not a prostitute.”
He then grabs a leash that she is wearing around her neck, pulls it up with his hand and says: “You've been a bad, bad dog.”
Cassie then moves forward, smiles and says: “Woof, woof.”
The scene has quickly triggered backlash and attention online, with clips of it garnering millions of views on X.
The social media user @Davebarrerita wrote in a post on X viewed 1.2 million times, “This is so [embarrassing] even for jacob. But, how Sydney sweeney can agree to do something like this? It’s like a [humiliation] ritual.”
Content creator Tiffany Fong also shared a clip of the scene on X, writing in a post viewed over 40,000 times: “Here's a clip of Sydney Sweeney in the new Euphoria, you sick f****.”
The film and television account @alanreviewsciema posted an Instagram reel reacting to the scene, which was viewed over 75,000 times, with the caption “WHAT IS GOING ON WITH NATE AND CASSIE.”
Social media users have also been quick to weigh in on Elordi's performance. The social media user @allurequinn wrote in a post viewed 365,000 times: “he does NOT want to be in this series.”
What People Are Saying
The account Sydney Sweeney Fans, in a post on X viewed over 180,000 times: “I hope Euphoria and Sam Levinson remove THAT scene, it’s totally unnecessary.”
Social media user @ATR3lDES, in a post on X viewed over 19,000 times: “her whole character has to be an humiliation ritual.”
Social media user @userbronde, in a post on X viewed over 2,000 times: “now that I'm thinking about it this entire scene [low-key] gave humiliation ritual.”
What Happens Next
Euphoria Season 3 will have eight episodes. The seven remaining episodes in this season will be released weekly on Sunday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT on HBO and HBO Max.
Newsweek's reporters and editors used Martyn, our Al assistant, to help produce this story. Learn more about Martyn.
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This story was originally published April 13, 2026 at 3:37 AM.