It's pretty amazing that Angus Cloud landed such a consequential role on HBO's Euphoria with having zero acting experience. While Sydney Sweeney may be the breakout star and Zendaya may be the show's most famous actor, there's no doubt that people are falling in love with Angus' Fezco. This is perhaps one of the reasons why Euphoria creator Sam Levinson decided not to change the original ending to the second season.
In an interview with Vulture, Javon Walton (who played Ashtray) revealed that it wasn't originally his character who was supposed to die. Instead, it was Fezco. But this was something Sam changed at the last minute. The results were an absolutely gutting finale. Whether you're one of the critics who believe Ashtray and Fezco deserved better from a writing point-of-view, there's simply no argument that Angus' performance as he watched his brother get blown-away was heartbreaking. Here's what both Angus and Javon really thought about the tragic moment...
How Did Angus Cloud And Javon Walton Feel About Ashtray's Death?
Javon Walton told Vulture that he only found out that he was going to be the one who died a day before they shot his finale scene. While Angus Cloud must have been happy that he still had a job on the successful HBO show (which has a surprising origin story), he was heartbroken that he was losing his co-star.
"[Javon and I] were just like, Damn, bro, I guess this is it, you know? It’s just a bummer that he can’t be on the show … though it had to happen for the dramatics," Angus said in his own interview with Vulture. "It was a sad couple days for me. I was all bummed out, and when the camera stops rolling, you still have this heavy weight on your shoulders. It was emotional. I was crying and stuff."
According to Javon, Ashtray doing what he did was inevitable. When things get real, he ultimately is there to protect his brother. On top of this, he basically would do anything to avoid going to a foster home.
How Did Angus Cloud And Javon Walton Film Ashtray's Death?
Of course, the whole process of filming the bloody and violent shoot-out scene took a major toll on both of the actors.
"We were shooting for a good three days," Javon said to Vulture. "I did a good bit of takes of pretty much every scene because they have to get every single camera angle. It’s a dark character so I really have to take a moment and go to that state of mind that I am Ashtray. When it comes to the emotional scenes, I have to just let myself go there for that."
Angus, on the other hand, floated in and out of the zone while giving his absolutely emotionally draining performance to watching his on-screen brother being killed.
- Ashtray is Fezco's adopted brother. While they aren't biological brothers in the show, they act as though they are.
"You gotta work with the mood and the gravity and the energy of the room, but I definitely needed the help of Sam [Levinson] to get to that point where I was actually crying," Angus said of his performance in the brutal scene. "What he said to me, it just cut deep. It brought up a lot of everything I’ve been through. I don’t know how he knew how to touch my buttons like that. Without him, it would’ve been more difficult."
Angus has been somewhat quiet about the challenges he's had in his life prior to being cast in Euphoria, but he did share what Sam said to him to get him in enough of an emotional state to film Ashtray's death scene.
"To be honest with you, it was a compliment. You know how most compliments are like, 'Nice sweater,' or just surface-level? He just told me, 'Bro, you’re here. You’re doing good work.' And since he knows about a lot of the personal stuff I’ve had to deal with, he was just like, 'You know how easy it would be for you not to be here. But you’re here and you’re doing it.' It’s not often you receive an actual, deeper-than-surface-level compliment about your life."
Did Ashtray Really Die In The Euphoria Season 2 Finale?
There's been a lot of speculation that Ashtray isn't actually dead. After all, they didn't show his body after the shoot-out. However, it was heavily implied that his life was lost. But in his interview with Vulture, Javon hinted at the possibility of seeing more of his character in the next season...
"There is definitely a chance Ashtray is going to be back because if there’s somebody who could survive a bullet, it’s Ashtray. People have had some really cool theories about what happens, like how Faye drops the glass and it’s all in her head and [the shoot-out] actually doesn’t happen. We’re just going to have to wait to find out for season three."
