By Ellie Muir

Copyright independent

Euphoria’s long-awaited third season will return in spring 2026, HBO executive Casey Bloys has said.

Bloys, chairman and CEO of HBO and Max Content, revealed in a new interview that the debauched teen drama doesn’t have an exact release date but can be expected for the spring months.

Speaking to Variety, Bloys said: “It’ll be the spring, but we don’t have a date confirmed yet.”

It’s the latest development in what has been a turbulent time for the Emmy-winning programme, after season three faced significant delays and cancellation rumours.

The Hollywood writers’ and actors’ strikes in 2023 contributed to the delays, while schedule conflicts between lead actors led to more disruption. Further complications arose following the death of actor Angus Cloud, who played drug dealer Fez.

Bloys said earlier this year that the storyline had been subject to considerable back and forth as showrunner Sam Levinson wanted to set the new season in the future and make significant changes to the script. The show is expected to return after a significant time jump.

Production finally began in January this year, with new guest stars including Grammy-winning pop artist Rosalía and 2014 Super Bowl winner Marshawn Lynch.

Many of the original cast are expected to return, including Zendaya, Hunter Schafer, Eric Dane, Jacob Elordi, Sydney Sweeney, Alex Demi and Maude Apatow. Colman Domingo will also make his guest star return as Rue’s (Zendaya) 12-step sponsor Ali.

Set in the fictional town of East Highland, California, Euphoria premiered in 2019 to both critical acclaim and criticism over its risqué themes.

The first two seasons of Euphoria follow teenager Rue Bennett (Zendaya) navigating high school, as she is dealing with drug addiction and relapses. Her classmates Jules Vaughn (Hunter Schafer), Cassie Howard (Sydney Sweeney), Lexi Howard (Maude Apatow), Nate Jacobs (Jacob Elordi), and Maddie Perez (Alexa Demie) all deal with their own issues, varying from breakups to substance abuse and mental health issues.

Notable names missing from the list of returning cast members include Nika King, who starred as Rue’s mom Leslie; Austin Abrams, who starred as high schooler Ethan; and Algee Smith, who portrayed Cassie’s (Sweeney) ex-boyfriend McKay.

Storm Reid, who played Rue’s younger sister, Gia, was also absent from the list. She previously revealed that she would not be returning to the show.

In 2022, Barbie Ferreira, who played Kat Hernandez, announced she would not be returning to the series. At the time, rumours swirled that she had stormed off set while feuding with Levinson, who has faced controversy for what some view as glamorisation of teenage drug abuse and a gratuitous use of nudity.

Ferreira told The Independent in June that she had a “very different experience” between seasons one and two of the series after she had significantly fewer scenes in the latter.

Ferreira said that she is still unaware of how Kat’s absence will be addressed in the new series: “I think about it all the time. There are so many ways that Kat could go. I’m curious to see where it ends up, if it even ends up being mentioned. Hopefully it’s something good… I’ll be watching with everyone else.”