Sam Levinson addresses Euphoria's OnlyFans backlash

• Sam Levinson defends Euphoria's critical take on OnlyFans culture
• Cassie joins OnlyFans to fund $50,000 wedding in season three
• Critics say diaper scene mocks rules banning age-play content

Sam Levinson has addressed the backlash following criticism of Euphoria's final season and its depiction of OnlyFans creators. The creator of the HBO series admitted he took a "fairly critical look" at OnlyFans culture, explaining on Real Time with Bill Maher why he didn't "affirm this life and how empowering" it can be.

"If you look at OnlyFans, it is making as much money as Hollywood. I mean, essentially it's on par," he told Maher. "It's not a niche business, it is a massive enterprise. And so if you're young, you're going, 'I don't want to go work in a 9-to-5 at this place or that thing. Well, maybe I can just start taking photos of myself.'"

Levinson on the appeal of fast cash

Levinson went on to explain what drew him to explore the storyline. "The question is, what are the long-term consequences of that? What happens when you know, as a young person, you're on Instagram and these things, and you're told that you're the product, you're the brand, and now you're 18 years old, and you're going well, 'How do I make money?' And I just thought chasing that desire, that kind of fast cash, was an interesting thing to kind of explore," he said.

He also reflected on the criticism the show received. "Also, at the same time, we caught a lot of criticism for it, but there's a part of me that wonders, if the show kind of affirmed this life and how empowering it was, whether we would get the same criticism. You know, we take a fairly critical look at it. It hollows out the individual. You know, you're constantly just depending on the likes and external validation," Levinson said.

Maddy as the season's 'moral center'

As Maher praised Cassie's frenemy and manager, Maddy, played by Alexa Demie, as the season's "moral center," Levinson offered his own description of her role. "She was managing the girls, which is an all new industry. It's sort of light pimping," he said.

Cassie's OnlyFans storyline

In the third and final season of Euphoria, Cassie, played by Sydney Sweeney, joins OnlyFans to pay for her $50,000 wedding to Nate, played by Jacob Elordi.

Many OnlyFans creators took issue with the harmful stereotypes used in Levinson's depiction of their field, including one scene featuring Cassie posing spread-eagle in a nappy with a pacifier in her mouth. As many have noted, age-play content is strictly forbidden on the platform.

Chloe Cherry calls storyline 'crazy as fuck'

Chloe Cherry, who was an adult film actress and OnlyFans star herself before she began playing Faye Valentine in season two of Euphoria, called Cassie's arc "crazy as fuck," given the character's privileged life.

"It's really hard to say if it would give her any power. Obviously Cassie is extremely attractive, so it probably would lead to her making a lot of money," Cherry said. "But it just feels crazy as fuck to see somebody living like Cassie turn to sex work. It's like, holy shit, that's where we're at in society? I really think that OnlyFans is a crazy, weird phenomenon of the 2020s that we will look back on and be very confused by."

Cherry added that sex work is being embraced by the mainstream "only because of capitalism and the economy getting worse," noting it "has nothing to do with empowerment or power or anything."