Going into Euphoria season 3, it was a real question how the creator Sam Levinson would decide to handle the untimely death of Angus Cloud, who played Fezco in the show. Angus died of an accidental overdose in July 2023, long before the team started shooting the new season in early 2025. The premiere episode airs Sunday night on HBO and HBO Max. [There are minor spoilers ahead for the season premiere of Euphoria.]

I got to watch the premiere episode early, and I assumed they would have chosen to write a death for the character within the show, especially because there is a five year time jump. That gives a lot of leeway to make bigger decisions, like a character death that could have happened during that five year gap. But surprisingly, the Euphoria team chose to keep the character alive within the universe. He is mentioned during episode 1, and his character is spending 30 years in prison for what happened at the end of season 2.

Sam spoke about this decision on the red carpet for the season 3 premiere, hinting at how the character might show up in the season. “There are a lot of scenes where people are talking to him on the phone,” Levinson told Variety.

“I thought that if I couldn’t keep him alive in life then maybe within this show that I can control and keep him alive there,” he said. “I think the whole thing was to honor him and also I can’t wait for you to see the last few episodes.”

Maybe the idea of writing a death for Fez was too emotional after the death of Angus in real life. In promotional materials for the season, Sam wrote that the season is dedicated to the late actor and “all the kids who weren’t offered a second chance. I wanted to tell a story where hope and light could still be felt in the darkness.”

Euphoria season 3 premieres Sunday night on HBO and HBO Max.