Max is already paying tribute to the late “Euphoria” star Angus Cloud.
HBO’s streaming service is opening the premiere episodes of its gritty teen drama with an in memoriam card commemorating the actor, who died late last month.
The card, which features a black and white photo of Cloud, reads “In Memory of Angus Cloud 1998 – 2023.” It appears ahead of the pilot episode and the Season 2 premiere of the HBO series.
The 25-year-old, best known for his endearing portrayal of the soft-spoken drug dealer Fezco, was found dead at his family’s home in Oakland on July 31. His family said that he had “intensely struggled” with the loss of his father to mesothelioma and burying him the previous week. The family also referred to the actor’s known battle with mental health.
On Friday, his mother, Lisa Cloud, stated that her son “did not intend to end his life” in a Facebook post detailing the moments that preceded his death. Lisa Cloud’s post came in response to social media theories that “have suggested his death was intentional” and she affirmed “that is not the case.”
Oakland Fire Department Chief of Staff Michael Hunt told The Times last week that the actor’s cause of death has not been determined.
Following his untimely death, two-time Emmy winner Zendaya — whose drug-addicted Rue was shielded by Cloud’s Fezco in the series — joined her “Euphoria” co-stars and creator Sam Levinson in mourning Cloud in social media tributes and statements.
“I’m so grateful I got the chance to know him in this life, to call him a brother, to see his warm kind eyes and bright smile, or hear his infectious cackle of a laugh (I’m smiling now just thinking of it),” Zendaya wrote.
Co-star Maude Apatow, whose squeaky-clean character shared an on-screen romance with Fez, fondly remembered her friend as “the funniest person ever.”
“I would get so excited to see on the schedule that we would be working together because I knew we’d have the best day, laughing so hard,” Apatow said in a statement shared Wednesday on Instagram.
“He was the sweetest and made everyone around him so happy. He was just the best. Words can’t really capture how magical of a person he was. My heart is broken.”
Filming has not yet begun on the third season of the series and is likely to be delayed given the dual actors’ and writers’ strikes currently stifling Hollywood. HBO drama chief Francesca Orsi said in May that she expects Season 3 to land sometime in 2025. By the end of Season 2, whose chaotic finale aired in February 2022, Cloud’s character was hauled away by law enforcement after taking the fall for a stabbing he didn’t commit.
“I can’t wait to get back to work with everyone,” Cloud told E! News in October. “I feel like it’s been way too long. I just can’t wait to see everyone and working on set again. Definitely not sure what to expect for Fezco, but knowing Sam [Levinson], it will be good.”
Representatives for HBO did not immediately respond Wednesday to The Times’ requests for comment.
