Euphoria's Hunter Schafer says she questioned Elliot's storyline in season 2 at first

15 February 2022, 16:42

Zendaya and Dominic Fike explain Rue and Elliot’s connection in Euphoria

By Katie Louise Smith

"At first, I was like, ‘Wait, why are we throwing, like, a dude into the middle of this?’"

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Euphoria season 2 has welcomed a handful of new characters, including Chloe Cherry's hilarious Faye, Minka Kelly's rich housewife Samantha and Kathrine Narducci's absolutely iconic drug-dealer, also known as Fez's grandmother.

But none of those characters have split viewers opinions quite as passionately as Dominic Fike's Elliot.

Elliot was introduced in season 2, episode 1. He quickly became friends with Rue, and the two of them started doing drugs together. His presence made Jules a little suspicious, causing her to worry about him coming between her and Rue. Ultimately, it's Jules and Elliot who grow closer together, causing Rue to pull away.

Elliot's inclusion into Rue and Jules' relationship has caused a huge stir within the fandom, and now Hunter Schafer has opened up about what she thought when she found out the character would be joining their storyline.

Hunter Schafer questioned Elliot's involvement in Rue and Jules' storyline at first. Picture: HBO via Alamy

In an interview with The Cut, Hunter explained how she initially questioned the addition of a new male character potentially causing drama between Rue and Jules.

"At first, I was like, ‘Wait, why are we throwing, like, a dude into the middle of this?’" she confessed.

Hunter then revealed that she soon accepted the idea of having Elliot involved in Rules' storyline, explaining: "But it wouldn’t make a good show if we were doing what was best for the characters.”

Basically, Euphoria wouldn't be Euphoria if all the characters made good decisions all the time, and Elliot is a bad decision for both Jules and Rue. He's not good for either of them.

In response to Hunter's comments, some fans have also questioned whether or not Elliot should have been a female character instead of a male character. One fan wrote: "they literally could have just made elliot a wlw girl, and it would have been soooo much better."

Jules and Elliot grow closer together in Euphoria season 2. Picture: HBO

Zendaya also echoed the same sentiments about the introduction of Elliot back in January – she wasn't "feeling it" at first, either.

"I remember when Sam first kind of talked about the idea of this Elliot character, I wasn’t feeling it — as someone who ships ‘Rules’ to the bitter end,” Zendaya told Variety. “And I was like, ‘whoa, whoa, whoa, what are we doing here? But, in retrospect, and also as someone who understands where the show needs to go and what needs to happen for these characters, it’s crucial that Elliot exist and that he be the person that is honestly the catalyst for a lot of things that just have to happen.”

While some people still aren't too keen on Elliot, we can all pretty much agree that the addition of Dominic Fike to the cast was inspired. And besides, if Dominic hadn't joined for season 2, his adorable real life romance with Hunter may never have happened!