Listen, we can't say we're big fans of Nate Jacobs (Jacob Elordi) on "Euphoria" these days. For two seasons of the HBO show, we've watched him emotionally and physically abuse just about everyone in his path, especially his romantic partners [1], and just be an all-around violent, bad dude. Sure, we've also seen glimpses of why he's such a tormented character [2], but he's still not someone we want around the characters we care about — looking at you, Maddy, Jules, and Cassie [3]. However, as much as we don't like him, from a storytelling perspective, we're not exactly ready for him to die, but that's what one TikTok uder is theorizing may happen, and we need to discuss.
TikTok user @DevinontheRocks came across the pilot script for the show — which you can read here [4] — and noticed that the old draft mentions Nate dying. Early in the episode, Rue says, "Last week, Nate Jacobs, star quarterback of the football team, was found dead in a cornfield off Route 38" and that she was the one who killed him in her voiceover. The script then jumps back four months. "It all started when Jules moved to
town," Rue says, essentially setting the scene for the first season, which would have seemingly told the story of what led to Nate's death.
@devinontherocks [5] Do you think they cut this plot entirely? Or just saving it for the end? #euphoriaseason2 [6] #euphoriatheory [7]
♬ original sound - Devin Gillis [8]
In the end, while Rue does seem to be telling her and everyone else's stories from the future, and Jules coming to town is a major plot point, Rue makes no mention of Nate dying. But does this change between the original script and the final pilot episode mean Nate's eventual death has been dropped completely?
Does Nate Die in the Original Israeli Version of "Euphoria"?
HBO's "Euphoria" is based on a 2012 Israeli show of the same name [9], and the character that seemingly corresponds with Nate, Ranaan, dies a year before the events of the show. Rue's corresponding character, Hofit, blames herself for his death.
Will the US Version of "Euphoria" Stay True to the Israeli Version?
Whether or not HBO will stay true to the original show completely is up in the air. The Israeli "Euphoria" only aired for one season, and the US "Euphoria" creator has been open about writing this show about his own history with drug use [10]. "I had gone in to sit down with [HBO's Head of Drama] Francesca Orsi," Levinson told Entertainment Weekly in June 2019. "I asked her what she liked about the Israeli series and she said just sort of what a raw and honest portrait it is of drugs and being young and everything. So, I started talking about my own personal history with drugs. I was a drug addict for many years and I've been clean for many years now." He went on to share that after talking it out with Orsi, he wrote an outline for the show and went from there.
@DevinontheRocks thinks Nate's death could still be on the horizon, but that the showrunners didn't want to give away such a huge plot point right from the beginning. It's also possible they cut the reveal from the pilot episode as not to be tied down to a specific timeline leading up to Nate's eventual death and are instead just going to let it happen when the story calls for it — as in, maybe Nate will die in the season two finale, or maybe even later.
Then again, the U.S. version of "Euphoria" has already veered away significantly from the plot of the Israeli version. For example, the original show took place in the '90s and parents barely played a role in the plot (and when they did, their faces were always obscured). So Nate may not die at all.
It's very possible that Levinson started out writing "Euphoria" with the Israeli plot points in his outline and then veered away from them as "Euphoria" took off. The theory that Nate may die a premature death can't be ruled out completely, so we'll just have to wait to see what happens.