‘Euphoria’ Hinted at Derek’s Story — But What Happened to Him?

Fans of Euphoria know Eric Dane's character Cal as the worst of the worst. Except, of course, for his son, Nate (Jacob Elordi). But we have started to get glimpses of the traumas and losses that shaped Cal into the trainwreck of a human he is these days.

And there's one surprising loss that stands out.

That loss would be Derek, the former best friend that we now know was also Cal's great love. The show seems to suggest that Cal seeks Derek, portrayed by actor Henry Eikenberry, in every sexual encounter, trying to fill the void his loss left behind.

But what happened to Derek? Here's what we know about where Cal's former best friend disappeared to.

In Season 2 of Euphoria, we're introduced to a memory of Cal's teenage years, when he used to run around with his best friend, Derek. At the time, they were friends; Derek and Cal were both in relationships with other people.

But both were struggling with their sexuality during a time when being gay or bisexual, especially in their culture and families, was not acceptable.

Everything changed for the two when they went to a bar one night and slow-danced. Their chemistry exploded and they shared a passionate kiss. That night, it was heavily implied that they slept together, and it seemed like they would risk it all to be together, and consequences be darned.

However, the next day, Marsha informed Cal that she was pregnant with their oldest son.

We don't know what happened to Derek after all of that happened. We do know that he planned to attend a state school after graduating, and that he and Marsha resented each other as they competed for Cal's affection. But we don't know beyond that what happened to him.

In the episode where Cal reminisced about his kiss with Derek, Cal slow dances with a random man at a bar and imagines it to be Derek, whispering, "I thought I'd lost you."

So, while we don't know Derek's fate, we can be fairly sure that they haven't been keeping in contact on the sly.

There are fan theories that suggest Derek died, which explains Cal's unhinged and seemingly unending grief for him. But other theories suggest he moved on and lived a happy life. Which, in some ways, might be harder for Cal to grapple with.

Derek's storyline has raised some interesting questions about Cal's life, and brought some stark realizations about why he is the way he is.

Not only does it explain a lot about why Cal does what he does, but it raises questions about his relationship with Marsha and what his future might look like.

Cal's behavior is out of control, and on top of committing sex crimes by sleeping with minors, his substance abuse and self-destructive behavior has driven away pretty much everyone he loves.

Does it all come back to the pain of losing his first love, Derek? It might be satisfying to armchair diagnose Cal's behavior and try to pathologize it, but one thing Euphoria has proven is that it's impossible to assume we know everything that is happening or has gone on.

As far as Cal's yearning for Derek, it might be a safe bet to say that we will be seeing more of this story eventually.