More than two years have passed since Euphoria‘s season-one finale. Fans have been treated to two specials in the interim, but it’s helpful to look back at everything that’s happened ahead of the season two premiere.
So, let’s start from the beginning, when Rue (Zendaya) returns from rehab, immediately relapses and meets Jules (Hunter Schafer), the new girl in town. Having left school to seek help for her addiction, Rue has become an outsider to her classmates, something that she and Jules bond over in the early days of their friendship.
But things take a turn when Rue begins to form feelings for Jules, who hooks up with various men she meets online, including Cal (Eric Dane).
Unbeknownst to Jules, Cal is the father of high school jock/bully Nate (Jacob Elordi). She only becomes aware of this development while attending the local fair, where she’s supposed to hook up with Tyler, another guy she met online and sent nudes.
Only Tyler isn’t Tyler—he’s actually Nate, who knows about Cal and Jules’ hookup session because he found a tape of their encounter. Now, using the nudes he manipulating Jules into sending, Nate blackmails her into keeping her affair with Cal’s affairs a secret.