How much did Zendaya get paid for Euphoria?

For the series Euphoria, actress Zendaya will be paid an amount of $1 million per episode after her negotiations with HBO for Season 3.

Euphoria is an American teen drama series which has been written by Sam Levinson under the banner of HBO. The series revolves around a group of high-school-going teenagers battling with drug addiction, complex relationships, bullying, social media, and more with the heart of the story being Rue Bennett (played by Zendaya). The show released its first episode on June 16, 2019, and has aired a total of 2 seasons to date.

Zendaya is one of the main cast members in the series along with others such as Jacob Elordi, Barbie Ferreira, Alexa Demie, Hunter Schafer, and many more. The actress has earned huge praise from various online sources and news platforms like The Guardian and The New Yorker among others for her performance in the series. Zendaya received awards like 2 Primetime Emmy awards for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series and one Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in Television Series Drama.

What are Zendaya’s earnings from Euphoria?

As of 2024, there haven’t been any official reports for Zendaya’s earnings from seasons 1 and 2 of Euphoria. While the actress has not revealed her income from the show, it was recently revealed that she had renegotiated her contract with HBO to increase the payment from season 3 and beyond for the series. According to the news portal Los Angeles Times, the actress has renegotiated her terms to earn a total of $1 million per episode from season 3 and beyond.

With this negotiation, Zendaya becomes one of the few television actors who have reached the $1 million milestone alongside the cast of Friends, The Big Bang Theory, and more. Hitting the $1 million mark also makes Zendaya the youngest, highest-paid black female actress on television.

About Zendaya’s character in Euphoria

As mentioned earlier, Zendaya has been playing the character of Rue Bennett in the series Euphoria. The character of Rue is shown to be a 17-year-old recovering drug addict who is trying to make a place for herself in the world. The character is shown to be quite sarcastic and introverted and is often seen battling mental illness and drug addiction which sometimes brings a negative side to her character. While being an introvert, Rue’s character is shown to have many friends and acquaintances in the series, stating that she isn’t completely antisocial.

During an interview with Vogue Australia, Zendaya claimed that playing the character was quite important for her. The Dune actress said, "It's been very, very special. I think the most special thing is when people come up and say: 'Hey, I really needed that,' or 'That was my story and I just want to say thank you”. She also added, "The fact that the story was so personal and that it couldn't have been written by anyone who hadn't lived it, people are going to respond to it. The creator, Sam Levinson, put words to feelings that people have a tough time being able to articulate, whether it be around mental health or depression”.

“I'm just extremely lucky that I was able to be a part of that story and really humanize what Rue is going through, which is what I think a lot of people have gone through or are going through. For every person who says something to me about what the show meant to them, it warms my heart and it means we're doing something right,” Zendaya completed.

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