Colman Domingo Praises ‘Euphoria’ Showrunner Sam Levinson as “One of the Best Storytellers I Know”

Colman Domingo has a lot of respect for Sam Levinson, the creator of Euphoria. During a conversation with actress Sarah Pidgeon for Variety, Domingo spoke about his experience working on the HBO series and shared why he thinks so highly of Levinson as a writer and storyteller.

The actor, who played Ali in Euphoria, opened up about how the role first came to him. According to Domingo, Levinson created the character specifically for him and based Ali on his own sponsor. That personal connection helped shape the character from the beginning.

“I didn’t know a lot of his backstory,” Domingo said. “Sam Levinson wrote this character for me based on his sponsor.”

To prepare for the role, Domingo said he spent time researching addiction and studying people who have struggled with it. He also looked at people in his own life to help build the character. Over the years, Ali has become one of the most important people in Rue’s life, serving as a mentor and someone who tries to guide her through recovery.

“In Season 3, we get into his origins,” Domingo said. “Ali is someone who’s hung onto faith, and he’s trying to instill that into Zendaya as Rue. And he’s now being tested about the thing he’s been preaching.”

While discussing the show, Domingo made it clear that one of the reasons he enjoys working on Euphoria is because of Levinson’s approach to storytelling. He praised the writer-director and spoke highly of his ability to create meaningful character arcs.

“I love working with Sam Levinson,” Domingo said. “He really is truly one of the best storytellers that I know.”

Later in the conversation, Domingo shared more insight into Levinson’s mindset when creating each season of Euphoria. He explained that Levinson never wants to leave anything important unexplored and approaches every season as if it could be the last.

“The thing about Sam Levinson is, every season, he said, should feel like a finale, and there’s always a possibility of more,” Domingo said.

According to the actor, Levinson believes each season should fully explore a character’s story so that audiences feel satisfied even if the series does not continue. Domingo said that philosophy has helped shape the emotional journey of Euphoria and its characters.

“You give every last drop of the character’s story, so if this was the end of it all, you really investigated every part of it,” he explained.

Domingo also hinted that Ali’s relationship with Rue reached an important point in the final season. He said the storytelling makes it clear where their journey was headed and praised the work he and Zendaya were able to do together on screen.

His comments highlight the trust he has in Levinson’s creative vision. From the way characters are developed to the structure of each season, Domingo made it clear that he sees Levinson as a storyteller who understands how to build meaningful and complete narratives.

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