Euphoria Is Already Facing Criticism for Sydney Sweeney’s Controversial Storyline

Euphoria is officially back on our screens, with the highly-anticipated third season airing this month. And with the first episode premiering over the weekend, the cult series is all anyone can talk about.

Season three sees Zendaya return to the show's helm as Rue Bennett, joined by the original all-star ensemble cast. We're talking Sydney Sweeney (Cassie Howard), Jacob Elordi (Nate Jacobs), Hunter Schafer (Jules Vaughn), Alexa Demie (Maddy Perez), Maude Apatow (Lexi Howard) and Coleman Domingo (Ali Muhammed).

Not to mention some major new faces, including Basic Instinct star Sharon Stone, Poker Face actress Natasha Lyonne, The Piano Lesson's Danielle Deadwyler and Gossip Girl alum Anna Van Platten, to name a few.

Season three's highly-anticipated premiere comes after a four year hiatus, with fans celebrating Euphoria's long-awaited return. However, just hours after episode one's release, the show is already facing criticism.

The backlash surrounds one particular upcoming season three storyline, involving Sydney Sweeney's character Cassie Howard, which featured in a recent teaser video.

The storyline in question involves Cassie working on OnlyFans to make extra money, with the teaser footage showing the character posing sexually whilst dressed as a baby, styling her hair in pigtails with a dummy in her mouth.

The controversial plot decision has been widely criticised by fans, with multiple viewers calling out the show's creators for "crossing a line" and "sexualising children".

"There’s a line and sam levinson has severely crossed it," one X user, @miatravls, posted online. "It's a humiliation ritual or something at this point, why she even agreed on this," added another.

"Can we talk, please, about the fact that not everything that makes us uncomfortable is automatically 'profound art'?," added X user, @UnaTalPadawan. "What we see in Euphoria crosses a pretty questionable ethical line. The aesthetic that mixes childish elements with sexualisation isn’t new, but that doesn’t make it any less disturbing."

Some fans have even reported that they will not be able to watch season three as a result, with @zendayathena posting, "Not even Zendaya will get me to tune into this I'm out."

Euphoria season three is expected to drop new episodes each week, with episode two scheduled to air on Sunday 19 April, and episode three on Sunday 26 April.

These will be made available to UK viewers from 2am on Mondays, with Euphoria season three available to watch on HBO Max, Sky Atlantic, or NOW.

We will continue to update this story.