There's a new kid in town.
Dominic Fike makes his debut in HBO's Euphoria this season, joining Zendaya, Hunter Schafer, Jacob Elordi, Sydney Sweeney and more stars in the ensemble cast.
When the casting was first announced, little was known about his character, Elliot, with Fike simply describing him to Variety as one of Rue (Zendaya) and Jules' (Schafer) "homies." He added that the character reminds him of his younger self, saying, "I don't have to do much acting... He's exactly like me. It's s--t I would say and s--t I would do."
But a new trailer hints that Elliot is going to stir up even more drama between Jules and Rue, with former lovers becoming foes in a love triangle to rival all love triangles. Fike is ready for the inevitable fan backlash, saying to Variety, "I can't wait to see where people go with that and for all the hate messages I'll get on my Instagram… and going into hiding. I can't wait."
So, we decided to look into Fike's background, seeing as he's going to be a big part of this season of Euphoria. Here's what we learned:
1. He's a musician who found fame on SoundCloud: The Florida-born artist made it big after publishing music on SoundCloud. He used the music platform to share his debut album, Don't Forget About Me, Demos. When the project went viral, a 21-year-old Fike was signed to Columbia Records. He went on to collaborate with artists the likes of Halsey, Justin Bieber and Paul McCartney.
2. He went sober after some rocky years: When Fike released his debut album in 2017, he was in jail for battery of a police officer, according to Complex. The musician told the outlet that he "couldn't check the views or respond to the homies" when he first shared the EP. As for the charges, Fike said it was because he was "wrong place, wrong time, charge with my brother."
When he was signed to Columbia, he used the money to retain a lawyer for his mother, who was facing drug charges. "I really needed money for her lawyer, straight up," he explained. "And that's why we couldn't settle below anything that what we were working with… It was like now or never, they gotta get some crazy amount of money."
In April, he told GQ that being sober has made a big impact on his life, saying, "I can make full songs now, and I don't hate them. I make music by myself, so I need to be sober to know how to plug this s--t in here. I'm so proud of how far my music has come. I'm expanding my knowledge."
3. Euphoria is his first acting gig: Season two of Euphoria will mark Fike's debut as an actor. Prior to booking the role of Elliot, he has only appeared in his music videos, which helped him prepare for the show. He joked to Variety that Euphoria "feels like a long music video."
4. His girlfriend is actress Diana Silvers: The musician sent the Booksmart actress a demo of his song "Peanut Butter Bagel" and, as he told GQ, "the rest is history."
The couple keeps their relationship private, with few pictures of each other on their respective social media profiles. But it seems Fike is in for the long haul, telling Diana in the interview, "I want you to come to one of my shows and I want to go to one of your premieres. Just cute s--t like that."
Season two of Euphoria returns to HBO on Sunday, Jan. 9.