Ashtray Wasn't Originally Supposed to Get Shot
Entertainment

Ashtray Wasn't Originally Supposed to Get Shot

The second season of HBO's Euphoria has been an emotional rollercoaster full of meme-able moments backed up by sartorial looks and a killer soundtrack but nothing seemed to hit fans harder than (and spoiler alert in case Twitter didn't already ruin it for you) Ashtray getting shot in the Season 2 finale. But as gut wrenching as the beloved fan favorite's demise was, what may perhaps be even more devastating is the that fact that it almost didn't even end up happening.

In a new interview, the actor that plays Ashtray, Javon Walton, revealed that the climactic scene almost went an entirely different direction if it wasn't for an eleventh hour script change. "Ashtray wasn’t supposed to get shot,” Walton explained to Variety. “It was Fez that was supposed to get shot at first, which is crazy. And then, like a day before, they changed the storyline to me getting shot.”

According to Walton, the last minute decision falls in line with an overall improvisational attitude director Sam Levinson approached Season 2. The same goes for the scene where it looks like Ashtray accidentally shoots Fez, with Walton musing that “I don’t think that was always there. It was kind of written — the whole thing — like a day before.” As to Ashtray's motivations, Walton told Vulture that "All he knows is to protect his home. When he heard that sound, it almost startled him, and that’s why he pulled the trigger. He knew when he started going he couldn’t stop because he would’ve just gotten shot."

But as heartbreaking as the plot twist is, there is still a faint glimmer of hope for Ashtray. We actually never explicitly see Ashtray's body hit the floor, so as far as age old TV axiom goes there is still a chance he could come back for Season 3. “There’s definitely hope for Ashtray to still be alive,” Walton commented. “Because if there’s somebody who could take a bullet in the show, it’s Ashtray. Ashtray is one badass kid. He’s not playing around. I believe he has a shot about being around for Season 3.”

Fingers crossed.

Photo via Getty/ CHRIS DELMAS/ AFP