Euphoria season 2 finale 'forgets' Rue and Laurie money plot line

2 March 2022, 15:56 | Updated: 17 February 2025, 19:59

"Rue STILL owes a drug dealer 10k and the last episode really was doing up the end of a teen movie narration, I'm sick."

Hello, is that the Euphoria season 2 help line? Yes, we'd like to report a missing plot point... Remember Laurie? The terrifying dealer who loans Rue a suitcase full of drugs in episode 3 then threatens her with kidnap if she doesn't pay her back? Of course you do, how could you forget?

Laurie was mentioned by name in the final episode of season 2 by Faye, who valiantly tried to frame her for the murder of Mouse as Custer's wiretapped phone listened to their conversation. But the woman who is still apparently waiting for Rue to pay up was absolutely nowhere to be seen.

With Laurie's serious threat still hanging over Rue, many fans were expecting Rue to reference the whole thing in some small way, or at least acknowledge that she still owes Laurie a lot of money.

However, that important detail was not mentioned once over the last three episodes, and now viewers are confused over whether the Laurie storyline was low-key dropped or purposely left out of season 2 finale so it can be explored properly in Euphoria season 3.

• Read more: Euphoria season 3 cast: Who has left the show and who's returning?
• Read more: HBO boss says Euphoria is ending with season 3
• Read more: Euphoria's Sam Levinson changed Fez' fate in season 2 to help Angus Cloud

Zendaya opens up about filming Rue’s intervention in Euphoria season 2

What happened to Laurie in Euphoria season 2?

The last time viewers actually saw Laurie on screen was in episode 5, when Rue ended up stumbling to her house for help while going through withdrawal.

Laurie mentions the money and Rue offers to give her the stolen cash and jewellery she picked up while robbing a house and running from the police. Only wanting cash, Laurie then suggests Rue could sell her body to make money.

After Rue throws up, Laurie then proceeds to strip her, put her in the bath and give her a pretty hefty dose of (highly addictive) morphine. She ends up locking Rue in her apartment after she passes out, but Rue manages to escape the next morning.

That scene highlighted just how sinister Laurie's motives are, but ever since Rue jumped out the window and escaped, we haven't heard a peep from her at all. Three whole episodes have gone by without so much as a nod to the Laurie of it all.

What happened to the suitcase of drugs that Laurie gave Rue?

In episode 5, Rue asks her mum about the whereabouts of the suitcase while she's looking for some drugs. In the background, we hear Jules say that everything inside the suitcase (all $10,000 worth) has been flushed down the toilet.

Since that episode, the suitcase, the drugs and the money have not been brought up again. By Rue, Jules, Elliot, Leslie, Gia, Fez or even by Laurie herself.

The fans are VERY confused, bro... "Euphoria season 2 finale 'forgets' Rue and Laurie money plot line," one viewer said.

Another added: "Rue STILL owes a drug dealer 10k and the last episode really was doing up the end of a teen movie narration, I'm sick."

The reason why Laurie's presence may have been absent from the rest of the season could be down to the fact that Rue's ending was changed in the original script.

In a profile with The Cut, Zendaya explained that "the majority of the originally planned season was scrapped," adding that Rue's ending was actually much darker: "The ending of the season was going to be very different and then halfway through, Sam and I were like, ‘We just can’t leave Rue here. We gotta put some fucking hope in this show.’"

Rue's original ending in the season 2 script has not yet been revealed, and there's no confirmation that Laurie was even set to reappear, but that possible explanation certainly makes sense.

Despite the disappointment from fans that season 2 did not reference the Laurie storyline in the final episode, it now looks like we'll be getting answers following the confirmation that Martha Kelly is set to return as Laurie in season 3.

Season 3 will reportedly feature a big time jump, taking Rue and the rest of her classmates into adulthood. No other details about season 3's storylines have even been teased yet.

For now, we'll just have to speculate about what Laurie's role in season 3 will be... Did she go to jail following Faye's attempt to frame her? Did Rue pay her back after getting clean? Is she out to destroy Rue's life again?

Whatever happens, I'm already on edge. That lady is scaryyyyyy!!

Read more about Euphoria here:

• Euphoria's Storm Reid reveals why she isn't returning for season 3
• Barbie Ferreira left Euphoria because she didn't want to be the "fat girl best friend"
• HBO reportedly rejected two storylines for Zendaya's Rue in Euphoria season 3
• Euphoria season 3 filming delayed due to 'script issues'

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