‘Euphoria’ Fans Debate the Meaning Behind Nate’s Horrific Nightmare
In the penultimate episode of Euphoria Season 2, Lexi Howard (Maude Apatow) debuted her play in what might be the most expensive high school production in history. The show focused on her relationships with friends and family from her point of view. It also took plenty of shots at Nate Jacobs (Jacob Elordi). Scenes from the characters’ lives intertwined with the play. One scene, in particular, has created a debate between fans – Nate’s nightmare of his father, Cal (Eric Dane).
[Warning: This article contains spoilers from Euphoria Season 2 Episode 7.]
‘Euphoria’ Season 2 Episode 7 included a disturbing scene with Nate and his father
Nate took his relationship with Cassie a step further in Euphoria Episode 6 when he told her to pack her bags and stay with him. Episode 7 showed Nate back to his old ways. He essentially dressed Cassie to look exactly like his ex-girlfriend, Maddy. Nate and Cassie sat together during Lexi’s play. However, things became tense when the actors broke into a musical number depicting Nate as a closeted homosexual.
While Nate watched the scene play out on stage, audiences saw a flashback of Nate waking up from a nightmare as Cassie comforted him. Nate lay on his stomach on his bed in the nightmare as his dad walked up behind him. The shot mirrored the image from Euphoria Season 1 when Cal had sex with Jules (Hunter Schafer). Fans came up with a few different theories about the meaning behind the nightmare.
Some fans believe Cal sexually molested Nate as a child
Nate woke up from his nightmare in a cold sweat and tears, meaning the dream was enough to upset him. Some fans think the nightmare implied that Cal sexually abused Nate as a child, which is the root of all of Nate’s issues.
One fan said, “Nate’s discomfort during the locker room scene makes me think this is representative of abuse he actually endured. That, and the way Cal pinned him down in a different episode and Nate flipped out in a truly fearful way… something honestly happened.”
Another Redditor pointed out a comment Nate’s mom, Marsha, made in Euphoria Season 2 Episode 6, “I think there have been a lot of hints that Cal abused Nate. Marsha saying Nate changed around 8-9 years old. He might have changed at the time he was exposed to Cal’s porn and Marsha misremembered his age, but what if Nate had already been abused by Cal when he found the porn, and that is why he was so fixated on it.”
The same user continued in a separate comment, “Nate’s character is written like a textbook male survivor of childhood sexual abuse. There is no doubt in my mind that is where his character is going. It will be about him exploring his trauma and the effect it’s had on him and he will have to wrestle with those demons, the same way Rue will have to wrestle with hers.”
However, not everyone was on board with this theory.
Other ‘Euphoria’ fans believe there are different reasons behind Nate’s nightmare
Not many people pity Nate after he terrorized several of the other characters. However, it’s clear most of his issues stem from his home life. Previously, Nate found the tapes of his father and his sexual encounters. Some viewers believe these are what prompted the nightmare.
“There is 100% no way Cal touched him, there is no way they would be this subtle in hinting at it if this was a part of Nate’s childhood trauma. Mentally, you could argue that he was sexually molested by the tapes which has been made been pretty obvious,” one Redditor wrote.
Another commenter said, “I think the nightmare was just serving to show how traumatized Nate’s been after watching those tapes for so long and so young.”
Whatever the truth is, fans still have at least one more episode to watch in Euphoria Season 2. Catch the finale on HBO or HBO Max on Sunday, Feb. 27, 2022.
