‘Euphoria’ Star Eric Dane Breaks Down Cal and Nate’s Confrontation in Season 2 Finale
(Warning: This post contains spoilers for “All My Life, My Heart Has Yearned for a Thing I Cannot Name” the Season 2 finale of “Euphoria.”)
Eric Dane can’t believe that “Euphoria” Season 2 has come to an end, either.
“Before we know it, it’s over. It’s weird. We waited so long for Season 2, and now it’s over. It’s wild, right?” he told TheWrap on Monday while breaking down the explosive finale.
Several dramatic storylines came to a head during Sunday night’s episode, including a somewhat fitting fate for Cal Jacobs (Dane), who is arrested after his son Nate (Jacob Elordi) turns him in to the police with incriminating copies of the sexual encounters Cal secretly recorded. The final interaction between Nate and Cal is noticeably less volatile than many of their previous confrontations, which have been loaded with trauma.
When Nate unexpectedly shows up at the warehouse where Cal has been staying since he left the family following an unhinged drunken monologue in the foyer of their home during Episode 4, Cal seems regretful of his actions, while Nate seems at a loss for how to move forward after suffering at the hands of his father.
“I would imagine that Cal, had he been a little more sober, might have said some similar things in the foyer of the house in Episode 4,” Dane said. “But he’s had time to reflect and gain some clarity. And I think, you know, his one biggest regret, as he told Nate at the top of the stairs [in Episode 4]…was that he was a horrible parent to him.”
While viewers (and Cal’s own son) might not know what to make of Cal’s apology in the finale, Dane said that he believes his character was sincere.
“He’s contrite in that, when he tells Nate that he had failed him,” Dane added. “The police hadn’t shown up yet. That wasn’t one of those situations where [he’s like] ‘I gotta bail myself out.’ He really meant it. He sees how much Nate is struggling. He sees how conflicted he is. And it’s his son and he really feels for him.”
Season 2 dove deeper into the toxic relationship between Cal and Nate, exploring Cal’s past and all the ways he has traumatized and scarred his son. In the penultimate episode, Nate has a nightmare in which he is a part of one of Cal’s sexual fantasies. While some took the dream sequence to mean that Nate had been sexually assaulted by his own father, Dane said that the implications of the scene are less literal.
“He had thought that maybe Cal had done something to him,” Dane explained, before adding that that was not actually the case. “There was a draft in which he came to me and he said, ‘Did you do something to me?’ and I said ‘I would never do anything to hurt you.’ And I think he’s pretty sincere in that.”
We last see Cal being escorted away in handcuffs, but Dane told TheWrap he hopes there’s more in store for the character than simply sitting behind bars. “I asked Sam, I was like, ‘Are we doing live from solitary confinement next season?’“ he joked.
“I don’t know what’s gonna happen next season. I’m sure Sam will come up with something interesting. I can’t imagine it’s going to be Cal behind bars for eight episodes. We’ll see.”
He added, “Hopefully he’s not in jail. I would like to see him sort of repair his relationship with Nate, as much as he can, and maybe find somebody to settle down with. That’d be interesting.”
Just like the rest of us, Dane is eagerly awaiting news on when the next season of “Euphoria” will begin production. But first, he hopes creator Sam Levinson is “on a beach somewhere relaxing” before jumping into the third installment.
In the meantime, Dane suggests that “Euphoria” fans can find solace in dissecting the complexity of the first two seasons.
“You always miss something and pick it up when you watch it again,” he said. “I don’t know if 2024 is when they’re gonna release Season 3, but there’ll be stuff for the fans to chew on between now and then.”