Who Plays Laurie In Euphoria

Laurie was introduced in Euphoria season 2’s premiere – here’s who plays the character. Euphoria season 2’s most intimidating new character, Rue (Zendaya) and Fez (Angus Cloud) meet Laurie early on in episode 1 of the new season. After Fez killed Mouse, his drug supplier, he goes straight to Mouse’s source, a former school teacher turned addict turned drug queenpin. Laurie’s security is tight and before she formally introduces herself, her goons force Rue, Fez, and their friends to undress at gunpoint to ensure that they aren’t wearing wires. Laurie quickly decides to do business with Fez and this relationship is the start of Rue’s downfall throughout the season after Laurie takes a keen interest in her.

When Rue runs out of drugs, she goes to Laurie with a proposition in Euphoria season 2, episode 3. Rue convinces Laurie to let her sell drugs, coming up with a plan that is seemingly foolproof, save for the fact that Rue is actually planning on just doing most of the drugs herself. This culminates in one of the most harrowing scenes of the season so far where, in the midst of running away from going back to rehab, Rue takes shelter at Laurie’s house for a night while in the middle of withdrawal. Laurie most certainly hasn’t been seen for the last time in Euphoria season 2 and Rue will have to pay up at some point.

With menace and a dose of sardonic humor, Laurie is played by Martha Kelly. In contrast to the dark melodrama of Euphoria, Kelly began her career as a stand-up comic before making her acting debut in Zach Galifianakis’ comedy Baskets on FX. Eagle-eyed audiences may have also noticed her as a tour guide in the MCU movie Spider-Man: Homecoming. Additionally, Kelly has made appearances in American Gods, Will & Grace, and the Oscar-nominated movie Marriage Story. With her latest appearance, though, Kelly is showing a more dramatic side and will likely end Euphoria season 2 as one of its best new characters.

Kelly plays Laurie with a motherly warmth underscored by quiet villainy, displaying care towards Rue in the show’s latest episode during the young high schooler’s brutal withdrawals. This is all for personal gain, though. Rue still owes Laurie thousands of dollars and Laurie knows that the only way she is going to get the money is if Rue stays on drugs, prompting Laurie to give Rue morphine so the withdrawals will stop. Euphoria season 2, episode 5 ends with Rue escaping Laurie’s apartment after she finds herself locked in the next morning.

Of all the new characters in Euphoria season 2, Laurie has stood out the most. Minka Kelly has made an appearance as Samantha, a housewife that Maddy (Alexa Demie) babysits for, but not much has come of her character. Singer/songwriter Dominic Fike was also added to the cast as Elliott and he has been featured the most prominently since debuting in episode 1. Rue’s friendship with Elliott spurred on her drug use in the early episodes before he had a change of heart and, along with Rue’s girlfriend, Jules, staged an intervention for Zendaya’s character. Still, audiences have not responded well to his character, primarily due to the fact that he came between Rue and Jules’ relationship. It’s clear that Kelly’s character Laurie stands out the most in Euphoria season 2 and it seems like she could have a major role in the final three episodes.

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Graeme Guttmann
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Graeme Guttmann is an editor, writer, and interviewer for Screen Rant. With a love for all things pop culture, he watches just about everything from the biggest blockbusters to reality shows like Real Housewives. He currently resides in Boston, MA where he is an MFA candidate at Emerson College for creative writing. You can follow him on Twitter @cryptograeme for pop culture commentary and random musings about pop music and just about anything else.

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