Euphoria's Jacob Elordi addresses speculation about Nate’s sexuality

1 March 2022, 15:33

Eric Dane and Jacob Elordi on Cal and Nate’s Euphoria season 2 finale confrontation

By Katie Louise Smith

"I think it’s less about this kind of poppy social thing where everyone wants to be like, 'Is Nate gay? Is he this, is he that?' It’s deeper than that."

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Over the past two seasons of Euphoria, there's been a lot of speculation amongst viewers and in-show characters alike about Nate Jacobs' sexuality.

Nate has mainly had (very toxic) relationships with women – he's dated both Maddy and Cassie, and has pursued Jules through a fake identity on a dating app – but there's been a few instances where it appears as though he's repressing his sexuality.

The big turning point for Nate in season 2 appeared to come during Lexi's play when Ethan's homoerotic dance number, clearly based on Nate and the hypermasculine jocks, caused him to storm out of the auditorium. He also labelled the scene "homophobic" in rant to Cassie.

Now, Jacob Elordi has opened up about the conversation and how he's approached Nate's sexuality in his performance in the series.

Jacob Elordi addresses Nate's sexuality in Euphoria. Picture: HBO via Alamy

In an interview with Variety, Jacob revealed that he doesn't approach Nate's personal storyline "in terms of sexuality."

"I always approach it in terms of family. I think the sexuality thing is born from his not having a relationship with his father, or not having the relationship he thinks he should have with his father and mother," he explained.

"The birth of everyone’s sexuality, in a way, I think, is based off of one’s relationship with their parents. So I think it’s less about this kind of poppy social thing where everyone wants to be like, 'Is Nate gay? Is he this, is he that?' It’s deeper than that. This is just a kid who needs a dad, but everything his dad is being is terrifying, so he wants to be the opposite of that."

Addressing Nate's sexuality further in another interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Jacob added: "[His father, Cal] is supposed to be a role model and a leader and a lover and your protector, and you’ve seen them doing these things and you see the wear and tear inside of a family. So, I think it’s a logical delusion or a logical fear that his father turned his lifestyle onto him, which I think is his greatest fear about his sexuality."

Jacob doesn't put a specific label on Nate's sexuality, but it sounds like he feels that Nate's fears about his own sexuality go hand in hand with him not wanting to be anything like Cal.

Jacob Elordi says he tried not to laugh while filming Lexi’s play scene

In the season 2 finale, Nate finally confronts his father and confesses to having found all his sex tapes at a young age. He then explains the effect the discovery had on him as a child, resulting in a recurring nightmare where Cal was “fucking [him] the way that he was fucking them.”

Now that he's finally starting to confront everything with his father, perhaps Euphoria season 3 will see Nate confront his own complex, inner feelings and repressed sexuality.