All posts tagged: Levinson

Sam Levinson Explains Nate’s Death Scene, Jacob Elordi Reacts

Sam Levinson Explains Nate’s Death Scene, Jacob Elordi Reacts

Published by Daniella Wilson

[This story contains spoilers from Euphoria season three, episode seven.] Sunday night’s penultimate episode of Euphoria season three revealed a brutal death for one of its main castmembers. After having his wedding night ruined, a finger and toe cut off and being buried alive, Jacob Elordi‘s Nate Jacobs faced his fate when a venomous rattlesnake slithered its way into the hole he was buried in and bit him. All of this was the result of Nate’s business arrangement with Naz (Jack Topalian), which left him in debt. Naz later went to Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) and said she had 72 hours to deliver the money Nate owed him. Alamo (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) then killed Naz to help Cassie and Maddie (Alexa Demie) free Nate, but when the coffin he was buried in gets dug up, his lifeless body is shown. In an exclusive interview with Esquire, the creator of the hit HBO series, Sam Levinson, unpacked what went into killing off Nate, a core character of the series since the show’s debut in 2019 who was known …

‘Sleepers’ Director Barry Levinson Is Still Perplexed by Controversy

‘Sleepers’ Director Barry Levinson Is Still Perplexed by Controversy

Published by Daniella Wilson

[This story contains spoilers for the 30-year-old Sleepers.] Nearly 30 years later, Sleepers director Barry Levinson still believes that the discourse surrounding his star-studded drama lost the plot.  Based on Lorenzo Carcaterra’s book of the same name, Sleepers begins in the late 1960s, chronicling four teenage friends whose mischievous quest for a free hot dog goes terribly awry when they nearly kill an innocent bystander. Consequently, they’re sent to the Wilkinson Home for Boys where they endure 6 to 18 months of sexual and physical abuse by four guards.  The New York-based film then jumps to 1981. Two of the four friends — John Riley (Ron Eldard) and Tommy Marcano (Billy Crudup) — spot their former lead abuser, Sean Nokes (Kevin Bacon), in a restaurant and gun him down on the spot. Their remaining friends — Lorenzo “Shakes” Carcaterra (Jason Patric), now a low-level clerk at The New York Times, and Assistant District Attorney Michael Sullivan (Brad Pitt) — vow to exonerate the imprisoned pair and expose the corrupt institution that ruined their lives. In …

How Sam Levinson Brought Back Zendaya’s Rue

How Sam Levinson Brought Back Zendaya’s Rue

Published by Daniella Wilson

[This article contains spoilers from the Euphoria season three premiere.] Originally, Rue was going to cross the border by river. Following the four-year gap from his season two finale, writer-director Sam Levinson knew Euphoria would return with his oft-addled protagonist (portrayed by Zendaya) in Mexico, having made the jump from teenager to adult, still working off the debts incurred during the recklessness of high school. The story had her going back and forth on dangerous drug runs for the unlikely kingpin Laurie (Martha Kelly). But when Levinson started doing research for how he’d introduce this new world, he changed course. “We went to the DEA headquarters in Los Angeles and they’ve got a bunch of photos of drug busts that they’ve done — kilos of cocaine, money, all this — and suddenly I see this one photo of a Jeep stuck on top of a border wall,” Levinson says. “I said to the head, ‘Well, what happened here?’ And he said, ‘Some idiot tried to drive a car over the border loaded with drugs, and …

Sam Levinson on Keeping Angus Cloud’s Character Alive in Euphoria

Sam Levinson on Keeping Angus Cloud’s Character Alive in Euphoria

Published by Daniella Wilson

After a four-year hiatus Euphoria is back, and quite different than where it left off. Most notably there’s the time jump, which finds the show’s troubled cast of characters no longer in high school but now pursuing their own paths in the real world. At the season three premiere in Los Angeles on Tuesday, creator Sam Levinson noted, “I liked the idea of sort of the wild west of adulthood and this frontier feeling where anything is possible. That was sort of the backdrop that interested me, is who had these characters become and what are the consequences to those actions?” As can be seen in the show’s trailers, the season picks up with Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) and Nate (Jacob Elordi) getting married, Lexi (Maude Apatow) and Maddy (Alexa Demie) working in Hollywood and Zendaya‘s Rue still trying to navigate her way out of some drug-related complications. Another major change comes following Angus Cloud‘s death in July 2023, and how to handle the storyline around his character Fezco. “I loved Angus very deeply and I …

‘Euphoria’ Creator Sam Levinson Donates K to Eric Dane’s GoFundMe

‘Euphoria’ Creator Sam Levinson Donates $27K to Eric Dane’s GoFundMe

Published by Daniella Wilson

Sam Levinson and his wife, Ashley Lent Levinson, are among those who have donated to the GoFundMe page set up to support the late Eric Dane‘s two teenage daughters. Levinson, the creator of HBO’s hit series Euphoria, donated $27,000 to the account and are top donors, which Dane’s friends launched on Friday to raise funds for his two daughters, Billie Beatrice Dane, 15, and Georgia Geraldine Dane, 13, whom he shares with Scream 2 actress Rebecca Gayheart. Dane, beloved for his role as Dr. Mark Sloan “McSteamy” on Grey’s Anatomy, died on Thursday at the age of 53 from a battle with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. He announced he was diagnosed with the disease in April. At the time of publication, the GoFundMe page had raised $184,776 toward its $250,000 goal. “Following his diagnosis, Eric became a passionate spokesperson for the ALS community, using his voice and platform to advocate for fellow patients and to push for greater awareness,” reads in part the message from Dane’s friends on the account. “Even as …

Ashton Kutcher, Nina Dobrev, Sam Levinson Pay Tribute

Ashton Kutcher, Nina Dobrev, Sam Levinson Pay Tribute

Published by Daniella Wilson

Following the death of Eric Dane, Sam Levinson, Ashton Kutcher, Nina Dobrev, Alyssa Milano, Kevin McKidd, James Pickens Jr., Michael Grassi, Selma Blair and Alexander Ludwig are among those in Hollywood paying tribute to the actor. Dane, known for his role as plastic surgeon Mark Sloan, aka “McSteamy,” in Grey’s Anatomy, Cal Jacobs in Euphoria and commanding officer Tom Chandler in The Last Ship, died Thursday afternoon at age 53 following a battle with ALS. He initially revealed publicly in April 2025 that he had been diagnosed with the rare degenerative disease. “He spent his final days surrounded by dear friends, his devoted wife, and his two beautiful daughters, Billie and Georgia, who were the center of his world,” his reps shared in a statement. “Throughout his journey with ALS, Eric became a passionate advocate for awareness and research, determined to make a difference for others facing the same fight. He will be deeply missed, and lovingly remembered always. Eric adored his fans and is forever grateful for the outpouring of love and support he’s …