When Euphoria returns next week, set five years after season two, much will have changed. Lexi and Maddy are now working in Hollywood, Jules is in art school, Cassie is an OnlyFans creator, and Nate wears Bottega Veneta.
That last detail sparked quite a reaction online last week, as sharp-eyed fans spotted Nate—played by Jacob Elordi—in look six from Bottega’s Spring/Summer 2023 fashion show. Originally worn on the runway by Kate Moss, Elordi appears on-screen in the full leather outfit at a construction site, where his character, Nate, seems to work. What kind of construction job would allow for a $12,000 outfit? Maybe that’s not the point.
Euphoria’s fashion has drawn attention since the series first aired in 2019. In 2023, A24 published a book on the show’s fashion by costume designer Heidi Bivens, who led the costume design for the first two seasons (she did not return for season three). In Euphoria Fashion, Bivens breaks down each character’s aesthetic and wardrobe, speaking with many of the actors, and explores fashion’s central role in the show’s storytelling—how it both borrowed from and helped shape the youth culture of the time.
This season, Euphoria appears to be leaning into luxury. That’s not entirely new; the students at East Highland High School are no strangers to designer labels. Last season, Maude Apatow’s Lexi Howard wore plenty of Miu Miu, nodding to the brand’s intellectual vibe, which in turn helped define Lexi’s character. Alexa Demie’s Maddy has worn everything from Dior to Chanel, while Nate sported an Amiri rugby shirt. Even Zendaya’s Rue has worn her share of vintage designer pieces, including a Jean Paul Gaultier vest and vintage Roberto Cavalli pants.
Ahead of this season’s premiere, Balenciaga’s Fall/Winter 2026 collection featured a video collaboration with Euphoria director Sam Levinson. This signaled a more overt embrace of luxury, extending beyond the world of the series.
Levinson hinted at his fondness for juxtaposition—like placing Elordi in a full-leather Bottega look on a construction site—when discussing with Balenciaga creative director Pierpaolo Piccioli and Vogue how he uses fashion to shape his characters. “If someone is dressed up in a space that is dressed down, for instance, there’s humor to it,” he said. And as luxury brands seek to capture younger audiences, partnering with a show like Euphoria is an obvious move. Piccioli told Vogue before the show that he wanted to “take a picture of this generation” with the collection and immediately thought of Levinson’s work on Euphoria.
“Star power is one thing, but at its core, Euphoria’s success is powered by its social lore,” says Louise Yems, strategy director at The Digital Fairy. “Fandoms and creator communities present a mostly untapped opportunity for brands to position themselves at the heart of the cultural buzz around Euphoria or any entertainment IP.”
Even before Euphoria’s all-star cast rose to mainstream fame, the show boasted impressive numbers. It’s the second most-watched series on HBO, after Game of Thrones. Season two episodes averaged 16.3 million views, up from season one’s 6.6 million average. Meanwhile, the season three trailer garnered almost 100 million views in just two days, indicating strong, sustained interest heading into 2026.
Now, the Euphoria generation is growing up. Just as the clothing in season two showed how the characters had evolved from season one, the season three trailer suggests a similar shift. Maddy has moved from cut-outs and bodycon dresses to a sheer shirt that wouldn’t look out of place on Haider Ackermann’s Tom Ford runway. Sydney Sweeney’s Cassie has traded pastel pinks and blues for silk robes and bikinis. And Nate is in Bottega. Perhaps viewers will be eager and able to buy a piece or two themselves.
The Business of Aspiration
The aestheticThe world of Euphoria has always been fantastical and exaggerated, from its glittering glamour to the high-fashion, stylized looks in the school hallways. This sense of unreality allows the show to dress its characters in brands they likely couldn’t afford in real life. What matters is the vibe and feeling a look creates, not the labels, which are never overtly acknowledged on screen.
“The aspirational and exaggerated nature of Euphoria’s styling has been one of its selling points, so luxury connections feel like the right move, especially as the audience has grown up with the show,” says Katie Devlin, fashion trends editor at Stylus.
In an interview with Vogue about season two’s costumes, designer Heidi Bivens recalled a conversation with showrunner Sam Levinson: “I pulled him aside one day and said, ‘I could do this, and it would be more realistic, or I could do this other thing that’s not as realistic.’ He said, ‘I don’t give an eff about reality.’”
It’s the ethereal, otherworldly quality of the characters’ clothing that drives so much attention and conversation. “The aspirational nature of the costuming is a huge part of what drove online conversation around the show in the first place,” Devlin says. She expects that, given the rise of ‘method dressing’ and ‘everyday cosplay’ since last season, audiences will be more eager than ever to tap into the show’s aesthetics.
Devlin also distinguishes between a runway look that fits seamlessly into a scene and a character carrying a logo-heavy designer bag they wouldn’t realistically own. “In this case, these luxury pieces are operating more like costume design rather than explicit brand placement,” she says. “It’s about choosing pieces that fit the world’s aesthetics, not what the brands explicitly say about the character.”
Ambassadorships: From Red Carpets to the Screen
While some viewers find it inauthentic to see the Euphoria characters in luxury wear, others have wondered if, in the case of Bottega Veneta ambassador Jacob Elordi, it was a contractual requirement. This is unlikely, according to an agent who works on brand deals. They note that clauses requiring talent to wear a specific brand in a film or show are rare, unless the brand is involved at a creative level—like Saint Laurent outfitting Emilia Pérez or Jonathan Anderson designing costumes for Challengers.
In fact, contracts often include the opposite safeguards, allowing actors to wear brands they might usually be prohibited from wearing as costumes. Elordi wearing Bottega Veneta in the show is therefore more likely due to his close relationship with and access to the brand, rather than his ambassadorship agreement. Natasha Newman-Thomas, the costume designer for season three, also worked with Levinson on The Idol, where she dressed Chanel ambassador Lily-Rose Depp in the brand’s accessories and beauty products.
Either way, appearing on a popular show—especially on an associated actor—is lucrative for luxury brands. In the first three days after the season three trailer launched, conversations around Jacob Elordi’s Bottega Veneta looks generated $949,000 in media impact value (MIV) for the brand, according to Launchmetrics.
“Euphoria is part of pop culture, so it’s no wonder brands like Bottega Veneta are leaning in to capture the zeitgeist and connect with audiences,” says Launchmetrics CMO Alison Bringé. “Jacob Elordi has become synonymous with the brand beyond the show, making it a natural fit.”A red carpet often can’t match the reach of a hit TV show. At the 2022 season two premiere, Alexa Demie’s Balenciaga outfit generated the highest Media Impact Value (MIV) among the cast at $422,000. Sydney Sweeney’s Miu Miu look drove $410,000 in MIV, while Hunter Schafer and Zendaya each generated $298,000 for Prada and Valentino, respectively.
This difference in MIV highlights the power of online buzz from a series like Euphoria. For brands aiming to join the cultural conversation, securing on-screen placement—especially in a show that resonates with young audiences—is a smart strategy when executed well. “While young people may not be the primary luxury buyers, youth culture and online discussion can significantly boost a brand’s relevance, as seen with Loewe’s tomato motif,” explains Eloise Gendry-Hearn, senior talent and digital specialist at The Digital Fairy. “For most Euphoria viewers, a shirt is just a shirt. But for the sharp-eyed fashion enthusiasts who instantly recognize the brand, it sparks online discourse and builds excitement.” Yems notes that fashion-driven organic social conversation is incredibly powerful—often more so than traditional advertising or product placement.
“There’s something thrilling about the fact that the jeans and flannel shirts on the runway were actually trompe l’oeil leather,” adds Delvin. “It reinforces the idea that these aren’t just clothes; they’re costumes. Seeing them used on screen as storytelling tools, rather than as obvious product placements or brand extensions, feels refreshing.”
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Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions About The Pursuit of Happiness
Understanding the Basics
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