OPINION (THR) – Boundary-pushing, real and exceptionally realized, HBO’s new drama starring Zendaya tracks sex, drugs and rap in the life of modern teens. There are a number of surprising and shocking elements in HBO’s new series Euphoria, which deals with teenage sexuality, drug use, peer pressure and more. But maybe the most shocking of them all is that the show is infinitely more impressive than a glance at its headliners might suggest.
It stars a former Disney Channel actress and pop singer, Zendaya (The Greatest Showman). It was produced by Drake, among others from the music business, and written by Sam Levinson (Assassination Nation, The Wizard of Lies) — the son of director Barry Levinson — who is still looking to cement his name. It has a long list of mostly unknown teen actors tasked with performing some harrowing modern-day coming-of-age stories steeped in bleakness. And it has the kind of trans plotline other series have struggled to present both accurately and respectfully. READ MORE