Euphoria creator Sam Levinson explains why he killed off main character in brutal twist before season finale

Warning: This article contains spoilers for Season 3 of Euphoria

The creator of hit series Euphoria has opened up about the shocking death of one of the characters on the show.

Euphoria is now drawing towards the end of its third season, which picked up several years after the end of season two and sees the main characters trying to make their way in adult life after leaving school.

There have already been plenty of moments, including some criticism of the show over some of the plot lines, most notably that of Cassie, played by Sydney Sweeney, starting an OnlyFans.

And of course there have been characters left in some extremely sticky situations, like Rue, played by Zendaya, who ended one episode buried up to her neck in sand, seemingly about to be splatted with a polo mallet.

It was a hair-raising moment, with the screen cutting to black as Rue screamed helplessly, leaving audiences wondering what on earth was going to happen to her.

Nate was killed off in season 3's penultimate episode (HBO)

Of course, in the end Rue survived this encounter, but viewers of the show have been left reeling by the surprise and sudden death of Nate, played by Jacob Elordi.

Nate had gotten involved with some bad people, and wound up buried alive with only a small air vent to keep him alive, while his wife Cassie has just three days to come up with $1 million so he can be freed.

After a tense standoff, Cassie is able to resolve the situation and digs up Nate from his prison, but was horrified to discover that all of her efforts have been in vain - a rattlesnake had slithered into Nate's box through the vent and bitten him.

Now, the show's creator Sam Levinson has opened up about the moment, telling Esquire: ”There's this kind of funny thing where I know what the audience wants in terms of justice or karma and with that in mind, I always think, ‘Well, how can I give it to them?”

Nate was not looking well (HBO)

“How can I give them what they want, but make it so horrific and anxiety-inducing that by the time it happens, the audience isn't so sure they wanted it?”

Characters have previously escaped difficult situations, but with just one episode of the show left and Nate's body being in a pretty rough state of decomposition when they found it, his fate appears to be well and truly sealed.

The show has now left Cassie reeling from losing her husband, while Rue has also yet again landed herself in trouble.