What Really Happened Between Euphoria's Maddy and Alamo — And Why Everyone Got It Wrong

If you finished the latest Euphoria squinting at your TV wondering what on earth just happened between Maddy and Alamo, same. The show loves a fog machine, and this stretch was extra murky. Here’s what actually went down, why it matters, and how the Nate stuff got filmed — yes, including the snakes.

What happened with Maddy and Alamo, actually

Maddy (Alexa Demie) goes to Alamo (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje) because Cassie (Sydney Sweeney ) learns Nate (Jacob Elordi) supposedly has 72 hours to live. The number they’re chasing: $1 million to save him. The dynamic is immediately gross — Alamo makes Maddy change into a bathing suit, get in the hot tub, and then lays on the compliments. Power move, and not a subtle one.

• Maddy asks Alamo for $1 million to keep Nate alive.
• Alamo has her put on a swimsuit and sit with him in the hot tub while he flatters her.
• He agrees to help her get the money. The scene cuts out before we see terms.
• Later, he spells out his cut: 20 percent of Maddy’s future earnings.
• Then Nate’s body turns up. Which means Maddy’s deal? For nothing.

Did the hot-tub scene imply Maddy had to sleep with Alamo to seal it? The episode very intentionally does not say. It leaves you with the queasy suggestion but never confirms anything beyond the 20 percent clause and the fact that the whole arrangement becomes moot when Nate is found dead.

How they filmed Nate’s death: coffins and real snakes

In the post-episode segment that aired after the Sunday, May 24 episode on HBO Max, Jacob Elordi walked through how they shot Nate’s final moments. He spent time sealed in an actual coffin — tight enough that his shoulders touched both sides — while the crew literally drilled the lid on. He says once it went dark, it was... weirdly peaceful. The stunt team emphasized they kept a close eye on oxygen and had him spend "minimal time in the coffin."

Because why not crank the anxiety, Sam Levinson wanted to shoot with an actual snake. So they used a rattlesnake on camera and also brought in a boa constrictor with a fake rattle attached to double for some shots. Elordi said the rattling was alarming when you’re locked in a box, but the boa was basically a sleepy, cuddly noodle — he even had to nudge it to get movement.

Elordi on Nate’s exit

Elordi called Nate’s sendoff fitting, given everything the character has done. Filming in that coffin sounds like a nightmare, but he made it sound almost meditative — which is very Euphoria of him.

"It is a bittersweet thing. This show is a massive part of — not just my career — but my life. It’s been amazing and I’m so proud of being a part of this."

A quick rewind to that pre-season tease

Before this season rolled out, Elordi told Variety’s Actors on Actors in December 2025 that the new run felt completely different and that he thought Nate might come off nicer this time. He also admitted it might not work — as in, he wasn’t sure if what he did was actually good. Given where things landed, you can decide how much of that you feel in the final cut.

One more bit while we’re here: Season 3 added a couple of fresh faces — Anna Van Patten and Toby Wallace — alongside the regulars. And if you were confused by the way the Alamo storyline dangled then snapped shut when Nate’s body showed up, that seems deliberate. The show leaned into ambiguity, cashed out Maddy’s future for nothing, and left the ugliest parts of that hot-tub exchange off-camera… which somehow made it feel even skeezier.