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Euphoria Season 2 finally returned to HBO after more than two years, and fans are just as obsessed as they were with season 1. However, there’s one question that continues to plague everyone’s thoughts. Is Euphoria’s narrator, Rue Bennett, dead? If not, how does the character, played by Zendaya, know the details of every single situation with her friends? Here’s everything we know.

'Euphoria' Season 2's Rue, played by Zendaya, dancing in a production still. Fans continue to wonder, 'Is Euphoria character Rue dead?'
Rue Bennett, played by Zendaya | HBO/Eddy Chan

Rue Bennett remains as the narrator in ‘Euphoria’ Season 2

For those not familiar with Sam Levinson’s series, Euphoria focuses on a group of teenagers in high school as they navigate a world filled with drugs, sex, and extreme situations. After her father passes away, Rue falls into a life of drug use and eventually lands in rehab. Once she completes her stint in rehab and returns home, Rue makes it clear she has no plans to stay clean.

Rue tries to keep her relapse a secret from her friends and family in Euphoria Season 2, but new friend Elliott (Dominic Fike) tells Jules (Hunter Schafer) in episode 4. Rue’s relapse puts her and Jules at odds once again.

Euphoria Season 2 continues to use Rue’s character as the narrator. She knows the details of all of her friend’s struggles even if she’s not present to witness them. This detail has led fans to wonder how Rue has such omniscient knowledge. Is it because Rue’s already dead?

Some fans speculate whether or not Rue Bennett died before the events in ‘Euphoria’ Seasons 1 and 2

The topic of whether or not Rue is dead and how she seems to know everything about her friends remains a hot topic in Euphoria Season 2. Fans aren’t sure how else showrunners could explain Rue’s knowledge of all of her friends’ personal lives. 

One Redditor wrote, “The most interesting theory I heard was from a user on TikTok who suggested that when Rue relapsed at the end of season 1, she overdosed & passed away. There are many ‘dream-like’ shots in the s2 premiere (the flashing light shots????) that could suggest maybe this is Rue being there spiritually but not physically, or maybe everything that is happening is just playing out in her mind while she is dying.”

Another user pointed out the ties to the Israeli series, “That was the big plot twist in the original Israeli show but I kind of doubt they’ll do the same thing here. Rue parallels sam’s own addiction experience and I think he’ll want to end it with her getting clean.”

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Other fans have different theories regarding Rue

As with all fandoms, there are differing opinions on theories, and that goes for this series as well. Those who don’t believe Euphoria’s Rue is dead have different ideas on why she knows everything about her friends.

One user pointed out how Rue’s life often imitates Levinson’s life growing up, “The way Sam and Zendaya have talked about Rue’s journey, hope gets mentioned a lot. I doubt they would do that if it has some tragic ending for her. Also, I feel the addict character is always a supporting character in teen shows and ends up dying in some ‘very special episode,’ so I feel like Euphoria is subverting that by making her the main character and surviving.”

For now, it looks like fans will have to wait until the end of the series to get the answer to their question. Tune in on Sunday nights on HBO and HBO Max to catch all-new episodes of Euphoria Season 2.

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