‘Cassie Doesn’t Have the Most Highbrow Taste’

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Just three episodes into its third season, Euphoria presents a dramatic meltdown from Cassie, even more over-the-top than when her sister Lexi portrayed her in a harsh light during the school play. The episode, “Ballad of Paladin,” focuses on Cassie’s imagined wedding and vividly shows how her fantasies reach their highest point—and then quickly fall apart, all before she can even change out of her wedding dress (the second one she’s worn!).

Five years after graduating high school, Cassie and Nate are engaged and living in a lavish, but somewhat rundown, mansion. Nate has taken over his father’s construction company and spends his time securing funding, while at home, he’s constantly trying to control their spending. Cassie, meanwhile, is creating adult content around the house, dressing up in various costumes in hopes of gaining followers and earning money. As they plan their wedding, Cassie requests a $50,000 budget for flowers. When Nate resists, she threatens to fund it herself through OnlyFans. Nate, wanting to maintain control while also appearing generous, ultimately gives in, reinforcing their unrealistic expectations and contributing to mounting debt that will later cause problems.

Cassie and Nate are the most mysterious characters on the show, and their connection stems from both of them wanting to be seen as important. According to Sam Levinson, the creator of Euphoria, the wedding episode was meant to dramatically show this, reflecting what drives these characters and setting up the conflicts for the rest of the season. He describes the episode as the end of the first part of the story, signaling that things are about to get much more intense.

The Beauty of a Shrimp Cocktail

When production designer Francois Audouy found out there would be a wedding in the third season, he immediately knew where to begin with his designs. He explains that weddings represent a couple’s hopes and dreams, and the show often explores the American dream in Southern California. As he gathered inspiration, he started to focus on how extravagant weddings can be. He and director Sam Levinson joked about the over-the-top nature of some wedding photos, and how easily couples get carried away with planning. Many of the reference pictures inspired details like the ice sculpture and staff uniforms, but most significantly, the wedding’s color scheme. Audouy collected funny images of things like elaborate ice sculptures and overflowing shrimp cocktail displays, and Levinson jokingly suggested using the colors from those displays as the wedding’s overall palette.

Creating the elaborate set for the wedding in Euphoria took Audoy’s team several months. They started by building a small model of the ceremony location – ultimately filmed at the Langham Huntington in Pasadena – to plan the lighting and camera angles. Then, they constructed the full reception set on the Warner Bros. lot in Burbank. Because the production was constantly evolving, details like costumes, decorations, and even the script changed throughout the build process. As Audoy explains, it was a collaborative effort where the design, writing, and costumes constantly influenced each other, creating a dynamic and exciting atmosphere.

A Touch of Wackiness

When designing Cassie’s wedding dress for Euphoria, costume designer Natasha Newman-Thomas wanted something extravagant and convincingly expensive, but with a slightly quirky edge to reflect Cassie’s personality. She decided a corset would give the dress a regal feel and collaborated with corset couture designer Jackson Wiederhoeft. Newman-Thomas shared numerous reference images with Wiederhoeft, requesting a dramatically long train and a lot of volume. She also envisioned a tiny, matching mini-dress and gloves for the reception. These outfit changes, Newman-Thomas explains, symbolize Cassie’s increasingly desperate need for attention, even including a planned ‘wardrobe malfunction’ – a glimpse of sparkly nipple covers – which was added to the script after an incident during rehearsals. Ultimately, everything Cassie wears is intended to recapture Nate’s interest.

Creating Cassie’s wedding dress was a global undertaking. Wiederhoeft traveled to Europe to ensure the fit was perfect just weeks before filming, and the intricate beadwork on the skirt was crafted in India. The show’s costume designer, Newman-Thomas, explains that Cassie had to wear Jimmy Choos for her vows. “They’re the iconic wedding shoe, and she wanted to be the most memorable bride.” Nate’s outfit was more straightforward – a custom Bottega Veneta tuxedo – but had to respect Jacob Elordi’s existing contract with the brand. Multiple copies of both the dress and tuxedo were made to account for stunt doubles and the inevitable wear and tear during the filming of the wedding night scene.

Costume designer Paula Newman-Thomas put a lot of thought into the guests’ outfits, believing they were just as important as the wedding dress itself. Each outfit was meant to reflect the character’s current life stage. For example, Rue wore a vintage 1950s menswear suit, something she realistically could have found at a thrift store, because she was trying to impress Jules. Newman-Thomas wanted Jules’ outfit to subtly connect with Rue’s, hinting at their growing distance. Jules wore a high-fashion Acne runway dress, perfect for her character’s newfound financial freedom as a sugar baby – she gets what she wants.

Maddy, played by Alexa Demie, arrives at the wedding at a complicated moment with Cassie and Nate, and her dress was custom-made from the ground up by the designer. The designer explained that Maddy is Nate’s first love and now has a unique relationship with Cassie, so her outfit needed to be as striking as the wedding dress itself. Initially, Demie brought in a vintage John Galliano dress, but they both realized it wasn’t quite right. The designer then began sketching a new design, but the tailor initially thought it was too complex to create. After many adjustments and collaborative efforts, they finally brought the dress to life.

Though small in the scene, the ring caused a lot of behind-the-scenes worry for the team. Just two days before filming, the costume designer contacted Ashley Levinson, the executive producer (and Levinson’s wife), concerned that the ring they’d found on Amazon didn’t look expensive enough for the wedding. According to the jewelry designer, they needed a ring similar to a three- to four-carat Harry Winston. Within 20 minutes, she found a solution: a friend going through a divorce had the perfect ring. They quickly got it insured and ready to use, thanks to Sydney Sweeney providing the exact ring size.

“The D-Day of Weddings”

In the season three premiere, Cassie tells Nate, “I didn’t wait my entire life to have a ghetto wedding.” This line, which quickly became one of the most shared moments from the new season, wasn’t originally planned. Director Levison noticed the real difficulties the team was having with things like flower arrangements and used that stress as inspiration for a fight between Cassie and Nate. According to producer Audouy, this happened again when they were creating the large ice sculpture – the real challenges became part of the storyline.

Gathering almost 25,000 flower stems – roses and other blooms chosen to match the color scheme – was a huge task, but keeping them fresh presented an even bigger challenge. A team of twelve florists worked full-time to care for the flowers, which were stored in a large refrigerated room and delivered to the filming location all on the same day to protect them from the sun. According to Audouy, it was likely the largest floral display for a film or TV production in Southern California in decades, requiring planning like a massive wedding.

To keep the flowers fresh during the reception, the entire sound stage at Warner Bros. was cooled to below 67 degrees. It was summer, and as event planner Audouy explains, she was worried the flowers would wilt if the temperature soared. She even installed a thermostat to constantly monitor it! The flowers came from all over – Southern California first, then Miami, Amsterdam, and Ecuador – because they quickly ran out locally. “We essentially bought every flower available,” Audouy says.

The Last Happy Moment

As Cassie walks down the aisle with her mom, Suze (Alanna Ubach), she’s serenaded by a harp and string quartet. During the walk, Suze unexpectedly shares a poignant memory, revealing her parents’ marriage wasn’t as happy as it seemed. She tells Cassie, recalling her own wedding day, that it was the last truly joyful moment she shared with Cassie’s father. Ubach, who ad-libbed parts of the speech, explains it was meant to convey Suze’s anxiety. She felt words didn’t matter and wasn’t even concerned if Cassie was listening. Though Cassie briefly looks worried, her strong belief in her own version of reality quickly takes over, and she continues down the aisle with a wide smile, determined to enjoy her wedding.

First-Dance Frenzy

The episode’s suspense peaks at the ceremony when Nate’s colleague, Naz, unexpectedly appears, having discovered Nate’s deception. Actress Ubach explains that most of the actors playing parents weren’t fully aware of the different storylines being filmed, which allowed her to convincingly play Suze’s naive happiness at the reception. “They intentionally kept us in the dark so we wouldn’t accidentally reveal any upcoming plot twists,” Ubach says. “It was fantastic—it really liberated me.”

Director of Photography Marcell Rev carefully planned every detail, especially the seating arrangement, to reflect the story and ensure consistency in how each character experienced events. He explains, “I made sure Maddy could see the bride from her seat.” In a key scene, Maddy is positioned to have a clear view of Cassie and Nate’s first dance, which immediately follows a tense confrontation between Naz and Nate about Nate’s questionable business practices. The dance itself is energetic and dramatic, resembling a nightclub performance more than a typical wedding dance, with Cassie dancing with tears in her eyes while guests cheer. Maddy also appears emotional, leaving the audience to wonder if she’s envious of Cassie or feeling sorry for her. Nate seems happy and pleased with the entertainment. According to actress Ubach, despite the chaotic appearance, the production was meticulously planned. “It looks like absolute chaos, but it’s never that. The production team is incredibly organized, which allows you to fully immerse yourself in your performance.”

Over the Threshold

Following their wedding reception, Cassie and Nate reconcile in the car and head home for their wedding night, unaware that Naz is already inside. Almost as soon as Nate carries Cassie into the house, Naz sends his men to attack him. Nate is brutally beaten, thrown down the stairs, and ultimately loses a toe in the violent confrontation. While Nate is attacked, Cassie cries on the floor, covered in blood and stunned that their perfect evening has been ruined. The director, Levinson, made a last-minute decision to film this final scene from Cassie’s perspective to highlight her self-centeredness. He admits he found the scene incredibly funny and is proud of it. The episode concludes with a cliffhanger, leaving viewers uncertain about Nate’s fate, but making it clear that Cassie’s wedding wasn’t the flawless event she’d hoped for.

2026-04-27 06:09