Euphoria star Eric Dane on his character’s closeted backstory: “I know what it’s like to live a double life”
In the latest episode of the critically-acclaimed HBO drama, written by series creator Sam Levinson, viewers learn more about Cal’s backstory as his high school’s star wrestler, as well as his intricate bond with his friend Derek.
Due to social constraints of the time, and pressure from Cal’s tyrannical father, they suppress their romance and both characters go on to explore relationships with women.
In one of the show’s most tender scenes to date, Cal and Derek celebrate their recent graduation at a gay bar and head to the dance floor, before finally share a kiss to the beat of INXS’s Never Tear Us Apart. (Yes, there were tears.) The next morning, however, Cal’s girlfriend Marsha tells him she’s pregnant, forcing him into a closeted and heteronormative suburban life.
As we’ve seen over these past two seasons, he and Marsha get married and have another child, Nate (Jacob Elordi), while Cal embarks on various affairs and one-night stands with both men and women, including Hunter Schafer’s character Jules.
