Some Euphoria viewers have been left confused and uncomfortable by a scene from the show’s newest season.
While the latest run of episodes has only just arrived, one moment has already sparked debate online — particularly because it puts Jacob Elordi and Sydney Sweeney’s characters in a scenario some fans didn’t expect.
Set in the fictional East Highland, California, Euphoria has built a reputation for unfiltered, at times unsettling portrayals of sex, intimacy, and the fallout of addiction and unhealthy relationships.
The scene drawing attention features Elordi’s Nate Jacobs with Cassie Howard (Sweeney) on a leash. Cassie is dressed in a corset, wearing a headband with animal ears, and has makeup styled to resemble a dog’s nose.
The moment depicts a kink commonly referred to as “puppy play,” where one partner takes on a dog-like submissive role and is directed, rewarded, or corrected by the dominant partner.
As he holds the leash, Nate delivers the line: “You’ve been a bad, bad dog”, prompting Cassie to look up and reply: “Woof woof”.
The exchange quickly became a flashpoint on social media. One viewer commented: “This is so embarrassing even for Jacob. But, how Sydney Sweeney can agree to do something like this? It’s like a humiliation ritual.”
Another added: “Stop that whole scene gave me second hand embarrassment, I was cringing so bad just waiting for it to be over. Omfg.”
Not everyone felt it was out of place, though, with some arguing that the uncomfortable tone fits the storyline and the character Cassie has become.
“Girl, it’s called acting,” one person wrote. “Sydney’s playing a messy character on a show that’s always been wild and unhinged.
“If it was too much for her she wouldn’t have signed on People acting shocked like they haven’t seen Euphoria before lol.”
In season three, the characters have moved beyond high school and are attempting to build new lives, with the show jumping forward in time.
Set five years after the last point the audience saw them, early episodes show Cassie trying to earn money for her wedding by selling explicit content through OnlyFans.
And, notably, this is not the first project where Elordi has been involved in a puppy play storyline.
A section of Emerald Fennell’s Wuthering Heights adaptation follows Heathcliff and Isabella in a BDSM dynamic, including a scene where Isabella enjoys acting like a dog for Heathcliff when Nelly comes to visit them at Wuthering Heights.
That portrayal diverges sharply from the original novel, where Heathcliff is physically abusive toward Isabella, leading her to flee in order to protect her unborn child.