Cloud's unexpected and tragic death was announced by his family Monday.
Angus Cloud's unexpected death shocked both fans and his Euphoria cast. The actor's family confirmed that Cloud died on Monday in a statement to ET. He was 25.
"It is with the heaviest heart that we had to say goodbye to an incredible human today. As an artist, a friend, a brother and a son, Angus was special to all of us in so many ways," the Cloud family statement read. "Last week he buried his father and intensely struggled with this loss. The only comfort we have is knowing Angus is now reunited with his dad, who was his best friend."
"Angus was open about his battle with mental health and we hope that his passing can be a reminder to others that they are not alone and should not fight this on their own in silence," the statement continued. "We hope the world remembers him for his humor, laughter and love for everyone. We ask for privacy at this time as we are still processing this devastating loss."
TMZ, who was first to publish the news, reported that the Oakland Police Department and Fire Department responded to a 911 call made around 11:30 a.m. by Cloud's mother. She reported a "possible overdose" and said her son did not have a pulse, according to the outlet. The outlet additionally reported that Cloud was pronounced dead on the scene.
A source close to Angus' family tells ET, "Angus had been battling severe suicidal thoughts after getting back from Ireland, where Angus and his family laid his father to rest. Angus was staying with his family as he tried to work through overcoming the grief."
Cloud starred as Fezco on Euphoria from 2019 to 2022, on which he had pivotal storylines with Maude Apatow's Lexi and Javon Walton's Ashtray.
Meanwhile, in a statement to ET, an HBO spokesperson said, "We are incredibly saddened to learn of the passing of Angus Cloud. He was immensely talented and a beloved part of the HBO and Euphoria family. We extend our deepest condolences to his friends and family during this difficult time."
Amid Cloud's tragic passing, ET is looking back at his rise to fame and how he got cast in one of Euphoria without any acting experience.
Plucked off the street
In a 2019 interview with GQ, Cloud, an Oakland, California native revealed that he was walking down a street in New York City when he was approached by a rep who said worked for a casting company. She asked him to come in to read for a new TV series. Cloud had been living in New York for two years after moving to the city on a whim after buying a one-way ticket to visit friends.
"I was confused and I didn't want to give her my phone number," Cloud recalled. "I thought it was a scam.” It didn't take long before he was reading lines from what would become Euphoria's first episode. He changed things a little to make it his own, putting his own personal spin on it.
"I had to change it a little bit," Cloud added of the pages he was given. "To make it sound real, like how I would say it."
A pivotal callback
Cloud was asked back to read again with the pilot’s director, Augustine Frizzell. The second reading changed everything, forcing Cloud to quit the "chicken and waffle joint" he was working at and his place Bushwick and board a first-class flight to Los Angeles to shoot the show's pilot.
While he had no prior acting experience, Cloud wasn't worried. Instead of trying to teach himself how to act, he thought it better to act like himself -- the character the TV rep saw when first spotted him on the street in Manhattan.
"I wasn't trying to learn how to act on the plane over there," he told the outlet. "Imma just show up and do what they want and then be done."
Even though he didn't have acting experience, Cloud was somewhat familiar with that world, attending the Oakland School for the Arts -- the same performing arts institution attended by his Euphoria costar Zendaya -- where his focus was on technical theater. He spent high school building the sets and lighting the stage for other actors.
A series pickup
After wrapping up the pilot, the show's creator, Sam Levinson, called Cloud to say that Euphoria had been picked up into a series. He moved to L.A. for the show's eight-month shoot, staying in Airbnbs near the show's lot on Culver City before securing a home of his own.
"Nobody was trying to rent me a spot," Cloud recalled of hopping around from place to place. "I don’t have any credit and they didn’t believe I was a real actor."
The experience of shooting the show opposite big stars like Zendaya was surreal for Cloud, who often questioned why he'd been signed on for the show.
"I was trying to look normal and relaxed and chill," Cloud said. "But on the inside, I’m like, 'I don’t know what I am doing. Why did they bring me over here for this? They should have gotten a real actor for this job.'"
Continuing his career
Comparing it to gigs he's had in the past, Cloud called acting hard, but a different kind of hard, telling the outlet, "I am not running around sweating, but it's that mental sh*t. You have to stay focused. You have to be on point. You can't call in sick. Acting takes a lot out of you. I'd be drained, but I was just sitting there acting."
Euphoria would go on to get picked up for a second season and a third to come in 2025. Cloud continued his work onscreen in the meantime, appearing in films such as The Line and North Hollywood, and in music videos for Juice WRLD and Becky G.
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