Former Super Bowl champ-turned-actor Marshawn Lynch joins the cast of HBO’s buzzy hit drama “Euphoria” for Season 3.
“The first episode had me like, ‘oh sh-t, I might not be old enough to watch this,” Lynch, 39, exclusively told The Post about watching the show to prepare. “Do I need to ask my mom and get my permission slip signed? Because oh, boy, that’s some wild a– sh-t!”
The former NFL running back was talking to The Post to promote his partnership with Candy Crush. The former Seahawk (whose nickname is “Beast Mode”) said the game helped him during his NFL career, which spanned twelve seasons.
“It was more [playing the game] in meetings so I wouldn’t fall asleep,” he explained. “I can focus on a lot [at once] and [playing Candy Crush] kept me engaged and helped me learn.” He added that he could only hear his coach run the same play “so many times,” but playing the game “made me actually pay attention.”
Post-NFL, Lynch has embarked on an acting career, playing a teacher in the 2023 high school comedy “Bottoms” with Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri. When Season 3 of “Euphoria” returns April 12 (9 p.m. on HBO), he’ll also be in the edgy drama with Zendaya, Sydney Sweeney, and Jacob Elordi.
Creator Sam Levinson reached out to him about the opportunity.
Lynch, who is from Oakland, California, was also interested in the show because “I want to show some support to my town folks,” he said, referring to how Zendaya and the late “Euphoria” star Angus Cloud (who died at 25 of an overdose in 2023) were also both from Oakland.
The former NFL star is passionate about his hometown, as he’s had his “The Fam 1st Family Foundation” since 2011. The charity aids local youth.
“We’re going into 20 years of giving back to the community. So that’s probably the most fulfilling thing that I have going on. That’s probably where my heart is,” he told The Post.
In the immediate future, he’s trying his hand at drama acting. He’s part of Zendaya’s plot line on the upcoming third season of “Euphoria,” and he called the actress, “laid back.”
“Let’s just say I had fun in that motherf–ker,” he quipped of the show.
“I was trying to hold my own,” he explained, and “trying not to be the motherf–cker that they’re waiting on to get your sh-t together.”
The former Seahawk said he didn’t want the other actors to say “oh, he just came from playing sports,” but rather, “I wanted them to take me seriously…but at the same time, I still am who I am. So, you get a lot of that [in the show].”
