Posted in: HBO, Preview, streaming, Trailer, TV | Tagged: d.a.r.e., euphoria, HBO, season 2, zendaya

Euphoria: D.A.R.E. Not High on HBO Series; Says Glorifies Drugs, Sex

With HBO's Euphoria only three episodes into its second season, the Zendaya-starring series is not only growing its viewership but also receiving strong critical praise for its realistic storytelling and depth of characters. Except not everyone is exactly on the bandwagon, with the Drug Abuse Resistance Education (D.A.R.E.) organization going after the cable series because it (according to their statement) "chooses to misguidedly glorify and erroneously depict high school student drug use, addiction, anonymous sex, violence, and other destructive behaviors as common and widespread in today's world." It should be noted that trigger warning messages regarding "violence, nudity and sexual content that may be disturbing to viewers" appear before each episode, with information on a crisis text line and an HBO-sponsored resource page (with links to Planned Parenthood, Trevor Project, and others) also made available. And then there's the personal matter of parents and/or guardians doing their part to make sure those who aren't old enough to handle such complex issues are able to have access to content that addresses those complexities in an honest way.

"Rather than further each parent's desire to keep their children safe from the potentially horrific consequences of drug abuse and other high-risk behavior, HBO's television drama 'Euphoria' chooses to misguidedly glorify and erroneously depict high school student drug use, addiction, anonymous sex, violence, and other destructive behaviors as common and widespread in today's world. It is unfortunate that HBO, social media, television program reviewers, and paid advertising have chosen to refer to the show as 'groundbreaking,' rather than recognizing the potential negative consequences on school-age children who today face unparalleled risks and mental health challenges," said a D.A.R.E. representative to TMZ earlier today. Of course, the organization would be more than happy to have a chance to "meet with individuals at HBO who are involved with producing 'Euphoria' to present our concerns directly" (though it remains unclear at the time of this writing if D.A.R.E. reached out to the HBO series' producers prior to making a public statement.

Returning for the second season of Euphoria to join Zendaya are Hunter Schafer, Eric Dane, Angus Cloud, Jacob Elordi, Algee Smith, Sydney Sweeney, Alexa Demie, Barbie Ferreira, Maude Apatow, Javon Walton, Dominic Fike, Storm Reid, and Austin Abrams. Created and written by executive producer Levinson, the award-winning HBO series also has Ravi Nandan, Kevin Turen, Will Greenfield, Drake, Adel "Future" Nur, Zendaya, Hadas Mozes Lichtenstein, Ron Leshem, and Daphna Levin executive producing. Kenneth Yu is set to produce, with Ashley Levinson, Harrison Kreiss & Julio Perez set as co-producers. Produced in partnership with A24 and based on the Israeli series of the same name, which was created by Ron Leshem and Daphna Levin, from HOT.

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