Barbie Ferreira Is Leaving 'Euphoria' After Alleged Sam Levinson Drama

According to Variety, the actress announced on Wednesday, August 24 that she would not be reprising her role as fan favorite Kat Hernandez for the HBO show's upcoming third season.

“After four years of getting to embody the most special and enigmatic character Kat, I’m having to say a very teary eyed goodbye,” Ferreira wrote on her Instagram Story alongside hand-drawn fan art by co-star Hunter Schafer, which celebrates Kat's journey towards sexual confidence and subsequent cam girl career.

“I hope many of you could see yourself in her like I did, and that she brought you joy to see her journey into the character she is today,” the actress continued, before saying that she "put all my care and love into her and I hope you guys could feel it" and concluding with a simple "love you Katherine Hernandez.”

Ferreira's sudden departure comes after fans noticed that the show was paying way less attention than expected to Kat and her storyline, leading to rumors of a bitter feud between the actress and Euphoria creator and showrunner, Sam Levinson, during filming for the hit series' second season.

Not only that, but speculation of a behind the scenes spat was further egged on by a report published by the Daily Beastin February, in which production sources claimed Ferreira walked off set at least twice after purported arguments about her character's narrative arc and Levinson allegedly cutting "a lot of her lines" as a result.

So despite HBO denying the presence of any on-set conflict, Ferreira's conspicuous absence at the season 2 premiere and another report from DeuxMoi continued to feed into the chatter, to the point where Ferreira told Insider in March that the rumors had taken on "a life of their own."

“I really think that the fans are really passionate and I do appreciate that because ‘Euphoria’ has really impacted so many people,” Ferreira said at the time. “Sometimes, things take on a life of their own, and they’re not rooted in the truth, but it’s okay because I know it’s just out of passion and out of curiosity and all that good stuff."

Neither HBO nor Levinson have commented on Ferreira's departure. In the meantime though, you can check out her post for yourself below.

Barbie Ferreira will not return for the third season of HBO’s ‘Euphoria.’ pic.twitter.com/7MzN03xOGY

— Pop Crave (@PopCrave) August 24, 2022

Photo via Getty / Gary Gershoff