Why isn’t Kat in season 3 of Euphoria?

It's a strange time to be a Euphoria fan.

On the one hand, we're excited that our favourite grubby, dark high school drama is back - on the other, four years on, questions are being raised about whether it was ever really necessary - particularly following the deaths of Angus Cloud and Eric Dane.

While Cloud, who died in 2023, has been written out of the show for its third season (according to Zendaya's character, Rue, in episode one, Fez has been jailed for 30 years), Dane filmed scenes for the new batch of episodes, prior to his death in February 2026.

Other major cast members, including Rue (Zendaya), Cassie (Sydney Sweeney), Nate (Jacob Elordi), Maddy (Alexa Demie), Jules (Hunter Schafer), and Lexi (Maude Apatow) are all seen in the first episode, picking up the story five years on from where it ended.

HBO

Even Chloe Cherry's character, Faye, is making an appearance once more, swallowing balloons of fentanyl for Zendaya's Rue to sneak across the US border.

However, there is one fan-favourite who is noticeably absent from the all-star lineup: Kat Hernandez.

The character, played by Barbie Ferreira, had a pretty major role in the first two seasons as a close friend of Maddy (Demie), and her own subplot focusing on her relationship with Ethan (Austin Abrams).

She also became a champion of body positivity, and was an instant hit with fans of the HBO show, which makes it all the more confusing that she's no longer around.

So, why did she leave?

HBO

Thanks to the big gap between seasons, speculation had been brewing for a while, however, Ferreira set the record straight on Nick Viall's podcast The Viall Files, in 2025, ahead of the new season airing.

“I think instead of me kind of lingering around for nine months, I think it was best for both of us that we just ended it there,” she explained, noting it was a joint decision between her and the show.

“Of course it's hard — I love Euphoria. I love Kat. Kat means the world to me. I mean, I spent so many years pouring everything into her, but it's like, you don't want to ruin a good thing.”

Shutting down any rumours of bad blood, she added: "Obviously there was a lot of discourse about it that wasn't true, and I'm a person who just kind of lets everything happen. It's a popular show, so people took it out of — I never walked off set. There was never anything like that."

"Miss this character dearly already", one fan posted following the debut episode of season three on April 12.

"Kat is so missed. Her story is just one of many loose threads left hanging from the end of Season 2", another echoed, while a third added: "Only way to save this show is to bring Kat back."

The 29-year-old says she's still very much friends with her former cast mates, and is currently starring in two new projects: Mile End Kicks, and Face of Death.

Euphoria season 3 is airing weekly on HBO

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