Euphoria branded 'toxic workplace' by insiders who claim background actors were denied meals and bathroom breaks on 18-hour workdays
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- Allegations emerged on Friday there is a 'toxic workplace' on the HBO show
- There was tension between cast and creator Sam Levinson, according to a report
- Sources also claimed background actors were denied bathroom breaks
- HBO responded saying the well-being of the cast and crew was a 'top priority'
- They also denied there had been any official complaints made to SAG-AFTRA
Zendaya's hit HBO show Euphoria has been branded a 'toxic workplace' in a shock new report.
There were tension between showrunner Sam Levinson and the cast, according to an investigation by the Daily Beast and insiders also allege background actors complained about not receiving meals on set and were denied bathroom breaks on 18-hour workdays.
The report also claimed the series got so many complaints that a SAG-AFTRA union rep was forced turned up to on set.
In a statement to Variety, HBO responded: 'The well-being of cast and crew on our productions is always a top priority.'
'The production was in full compliance with all safety guidelines and guild protocols. It's not uncommon for drama series to have complex shoots, and COVID protocols add an additional layer.'
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'We maintain an open line of communication with all the guilds, including SAG-AFTRA. There were never any formal inquiries raised.'
However, an anonymous background extra told the Daily Beast: 'I understand that I'm doing background work. I'm not the most important person there, I know where I am on the totem pole.'
'But it got to a point where I was like, I'm still a person, I'm still human. Please let me go to the restroom, don't tell me I can't go for 30 minutes or tell me I can't get a snack when you're not going to feed me and it's 4 a.m. It just very much felt like we didn't exist as people.'
Sources added that extras dressed in skimpy clothes were told to wait outside at night in freezing temperatures with two space heaters to keep them warm.
Other accusations in the piece included supposed grievances around Levinson not having a proper shot list when arriving onset, instead preferring to shoot scenes 'off the cuff.'
Sources alleged that Levinson had a falling out with actress Barbie Ferreira, who plays Kat Hernandez, resulting in the young star walking off set.
The article notes that actors from show including Jacob Elordi and Maude Apatow had previously acknowledged that season two was tough to film, with shooting often taking place at night.
Jacob (who plays Noah Flynn in the show) confirmed to Esquire Middle East earlier this month that they would often work for 16-hours straight.
'We shoot for so long, and it takes so many hours. And you know it’s worthwhile while you’re doing it, but a 16-hour day is a 16-hour day,' he said.
It was previously revealed that creator Sam Levinson rewrote almost the entire script of the eight-episode season after it was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
'The majority of the originally planned season was scrapped,' Zendaya told The Cut in an interview published on February 14. 'There are very few things that remain in the version that you are now seeing.'
Jacob also spoke to Insider about the continuously-changing script.
'Honestly, these scripts were chopping and changing pretty regularly for the longest time,' he explained.
'I had a general idea of what was happening, but it was also pretty touch and go a lot of the time.'
The Daily Beast attack also comes after another Euphoria background actor opened up about the 'miserable' experience she had on set last month, claiming several extras refused to return after working 16-hour days which left them 'numb.'
Ranielle Marie, from Los Angeles, California, got to work as a background actress during a few episodes of season two of the HBO Max series, which stars Zendaya, Jacob Elordi, Hunter Schafer, Sydney Sweeney, and Angus Cloud.
But according to the actress, she decided not to return to the show after she was forced to work 16-hour days without warning, was fed ice-cold food, and had to film scenes in a 'dusty room.'
She shared some behind-the-scenes details on the wildly popular show in a recent TikTok video, which quickly went viral and shocked many of its avid fans.
In the TikTok, which has been viewed more than 89,000 times, Ranielle pointed out that if you look closely at episode seven of season two, entitled The Theater and It's Double, you'll notice that many of the background actors are different throughout one particular scene.
The episode, which aired on February 20, followed Lexi Howard (played by Maude Apatow) as she put on a school play about the rest of the characters.
The scene in question showed many of the characters sitting in the audience while watching the play, and according to Ranielle, who is spotted in the third row, it took 'weeks' to film it.
She claimed that the reason the background actors change during the scene is because many of them decided they didn't want to return mid-way through the taping.
'The play and the audience scenes actually took forever for them to film, like it took weeks for them to film just this episode, which is honestly crazy to me,' she said.
'But there's a lot of inconsistencies of background because of it. Obviously people don't want to return, like, I didn't because I was miserable.'
Ranielle, who has since made her TikTok account private, pointed out that actor Dominic Fike (who plays Elliot) had to be replaced halfway through the scene by a 'bootleg.'
She showed off the lookalike actor, but didn't specify why Dominic couldn't finish taping the scene himself.
'I find it really funny that they tried to have the continuity by having a bootleg Dominic Fike right there,' she said, while pointing to the double.
In the comment section, Ranielle spoke further about her time on the show, writing that she was 'miserable' but not 'ungrateful' for the experience.
'I did my job, got my check, and didn't come back. That's all,' she explained.
When one fan asked her why many of the extras didn't return to the set, she added, 'It's mostly the weather and boredom (16-hour long days of work).'
A fellow background actor also spoke out, calling the job 'draining.'
'OMG no [for real],' agreed Ranielle.
She also explained that they did pay her for the extra hours that she worked, but claimed they didn't warn her before-hand about the immense amount of hours.
When someone asked her what it was like to see the stars in person, Ranielle called it 'surreal' and said most of them were 'nice,' but added that after such a long day, she usually 'just wanted to go home.'
Meanwhile, the show has been no stranger to controversy.
In January, the Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, or D.A.R.E, slammed the series for choosing to 'misguidedly glorify and erroneously depict high school student drug use addiction... and other destructive behaviors as common in today's world.'
Earlier this year, star Sydney Sweeney, who plays Cassie, revealed she requested that some nude scenes be cut from filming.
'There are moments where [my character] Cassie was supposed to be shirtless and I would tell Sam, "I don't really think that's necessary here," she told the Independent.
'He was like, "OK, we don't need it."'
The gripe emerged as many viewers also slammed this season for the large amount of 'unnecessary' nude scenes.
'Euphoria be having so many unnecessary nude scenes,' wrote on fan on Twitter back in January.
'Euphoria's 40-year-old writer could've created the show in a college setting, rather than putting unnecessary nude and sex scenes involving 17-year-olds which sexualizes and makes it seem normal to perceive minors that way,' added another disgruntled viewer.
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