Zendaya opened up Sunday about her character's journey and what she hoped viewers would take away from season two of HBO's hit series "Euphoria."
"Euphoria," which premiered in 2019, follows Rue (played by Zendaya), a high school student who struggles with addiction amid relationships, friendships and her home life.
Ahead of the fifth episode on Sunday, the 25-year-old actor, who is also an executive producer on the show, shared a statement on Instagram saying her character "hits rock bottom" this season.
"It’s my hope for people watching that they still see her as a person worthy of their love," Zendaya said. "And worthy of their time, and that she has a redemptive quality still, and that we still see the good in her even if she can’t see it in herself."
She continued: "If people can go with her through that, and get to the end, and still have hope for her future, and watch her make the changes and steps to heal and humanize her through her sobriety journey and her addiction, then maybe they can extend that to people in real life."
"If you can love her, then you can love someone that is struggling with the same thing, and maybe have a greater understanding of the pain they're facing, that is often out of their control," she said.
If you can love her, then you can love someone that is struggling with the same thing, and maybe have a greater understanding of the pain they’re facing, that is often out of their control.
Zendaya, on her 'euphoria' character, Rue
Zendaya won a Primetime Emmy Award for her performance as Rue in season one of "Euphoria," making her the youngest person to win in the category of lead actress in a drama series. On Friday, "Euphoria" was renewed for a third season.
The hit HBO series has been criticized by the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, or D.A.R.E., for its depiction of drug use, sex and violence. HBO did not respond to multiple requests for comment about the criticism.
Zendaya said in her statement that she cared "deeply" about Rue and the people surrounding her.
"I think many of them share her story of addiction and sobriety, and many of them share a lot of her emotional disorders, and I think it's important we continue to have that love for [Rue]," the actor wrote.
She added: "I think it’s important that we have characters that are flawed. And remember that we are not the worst mistake we’ve ever made. And that redemption is possible."
