With one episode left in Euphoria season three, Jacob Elordi reflected on Nate Jacobs’ death in episode 7—sealed in a shallow grave with a vent for air—after a rattlesnake bit him. In HBO behind-the-scenes footage, Elordi described filming the moment, while se
For Jacob Elordi, Nate Jacobs’ final moment in Euphoria season three didn’t just land on screen—it came with a rattlesnake.
With just one more episode remaining in Euphoria season three. episode 7 delivered a grim turn: Nate. who had been hunted down and tortured by loan sharks over money he owed from a bad business deal. was buried in a shallow grave with only a small vent for air. His wife Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) was given three days to come up with the money to save him. Maddy (Alexa Demie) then teamed up with Cassie to set Nate free. but by the time they arrived. he was already dead.
The cause was both brutal and bizarre. A rattlesnake had gotten into the vent and bit him, and he died from the poisonous venom.
Elordi later broke silence on the death in a behind-the-scenes feature for HBO. describing what it felt like to film the scene. “Tucked in this box with dust falling on me and a snake coming down the pipe. That’s a cool way to go,” he said. Elordi added that Nate was a character who “has made so many mistakes and made so many dark choices. ” and he called it “cool to see it all come to what it’s come to.” He also framed Euphoria as more than a role. “This show is a massive part of, not just my career, but my life. It’s been amazing, and I’m so proud, being a part of this.”.
When it came to the snake itself. Elordi said the animal he worked with was “super cute.” He explained that the production used a fake rattler on the end of a boa constrictor. and that the plan was to drop the snake on him. “The snakes were rattling, which is really alarming when you’re locked in a box,” Elordi said. “He was real cuddly, so he just saddled up next to me and it was nice. But he was real sleepy. I had to kind of nudge him to get him to come up.”.
Nate’s death is the latest in a season marked by escalating violence tied to his debts—earlier. on his wedding night. Nate had his toe cut off due to his financial troubles. and after it was sewed back on. it was chopped off again. Later in the season, he also had a finger cut off as he continued to owe money.
That accumulation is exactly what series creator Sam Levinson spoke about when he explained the “karma” behind Nate’s ending in an interview with Esquire. Levinson described a deliberate approach to justice on the show—one that gives viewers what they want. without letting them feel fully comfortable when it arrives.
“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?’ 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?’” Levinson said.
After Nate’s run-in with violence throughout the season. the creator framed his death as a confrontation with that desire for retribution. “It’s like, ‘Oh, you wanted him to get his comeuppance…?. Okay.’ That feeling of complicity with the audience is always an interesting note to play inside of this sort of larger structure. You end up going, ‘Oh God, I don’t know. Should he have had it better?. Did he deserve it?’ Those kinds of questions are always exciting to pose to the audience.”.
In the end, Nate’s fate closes a chapter that’s been fueled by debt, cruelty, and escalating punishment—then culminates in a trap with one thin opening, where a rattlesnake’s bite becomes the final, irreversible twist.
Euphoria Jacob Elordi Nate Jacobs Cassie Sydney Sweeney Maddy Alexa Demie Sam Levinson HBO episode 7 season three rattlesnake spoiler