"Stand Still Like the Hummingbird" is the fifth episode of the second season of the American teen drama television series Euphoria. The episode was written and directed by series creator Sam Levinson. It originally aired on HBO on February 6, 2022. The title of this episode is a reference to the 1962 essay collection of the same name by American novelist Henry Miller.
Gia Bennett (Storm Reid) overhears an argument between her mother Leslie (Nika King), who has recently discovered that her eldest daughter Rue (Zendaya) has relapsed to hard drugs again. Rue begins to panic, as she can't find the suitcase that dealer Laurie (Martha Kelly) fronted her. After Rue has a violent meltdown, Leslie reveals that Jules Vaughn (Hunter Schafer) was the one who told her. Rue becomes incensed at hearing Jules' voice, finding her and Elliot (Dominic Fike) in the living room. Rue harshly berates Jules and ends their relationship. Rue allows Leslie to take her to drug rehabilitation, but on the car ride there, gets out in the middle of the road.
Rue goes to Fezco O'Neill (Angus Cloud) and begs him for drugs to ease her drug withdrawals. Rue sneaks into Fezco's grandma's room to steal her pills. Fezco catches her and throws her out of his house. Rue stumbles into a wealthy neighborhood and sneaks into a couple's home. She raids it for jewelry and cash. The couple returns home and the wife notices missing jewelry, who alerts her husband to call the police and get the gun. Rue runs out of the house.
Rue encounters police officers who ask her where she's going. While trying to answer them, she vomits and runs away. The police begin to chase her and Rue runs several blocks and across a busy street to escape, causing a traffic collision in the process. Rue arrives at Laurie's apartment with $2,000 in cash and the jewelry. Laurie rejects Rue's money, but seems merciful and forgiving. Laurie tells Rue that she was introduced to opiates after a shoulder surgery, empathizing with Rue's withdrawal.
Rue notices a padlocked door at the end of the hall, with scratching noises coming from the other side. Laurie suggests Rue turn to prostitution to pay her debts. Rue collapses in the restroom and Laurie puts her in the bathtub and injects her with morphine. In a flashback, a young Rue gives a eulogy for her father. Back in the present, Rue wakes up the next morning and finds Laurie's front door locked. Rue opens a window and jumps out, escaping the apartment. She returns home.
American novelist Henry Miller's 1962 collection of philosophy, stories and essays, Stand Still Like the Hummingbird, is the origin of the episode's title.[1] In an behind-the-scenes video uploaded to Euphoria's YouTube channel, series creator and writer Sam Levinson spoke on the writing process: "There's obviously parallels I have in my own life to Rue, so it wasn't hard to imagine how that situation would unfold." He also articulated that "It's ultimately, I think, something we forget about addiction is the impact it has on families. As a parent, I can't imagine being on the other end of something like that."[2]
Filming
Zendaya called the filming of the episode a "war zone" in an interview with Teen Vogue, "I'm very grateful that I'm in a space where I feel comfortable and safe, and with actors and actresses that I'm obviously very close with. After every take, we're hugging each other, we're talking through it, we're embracing, checking in."[3] She also made a post on her Instagram about Rue hitting "rock bottom", shared before the episode's broadcast: "I also care about the people who care about her, because I think many of them share her story of addiction and sobriety, and many of them share a lot of emotional disorders, and I think it's important that we continue to have that love for her."[4]
According to Nielsen Media Research, upon airing "Stand Still Like the Hummingbird" was watched by 353,000 people. They estimated that 0.11% of the total 18-49 population in the US was tuning in.[6]
Review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes gives the episode an approval score of 88%, based on 8 critical reviews.[7] In a ranking of the first two seasons and specials, BuzzFeed listed "Stand Still Like the Hummingbird" at three out of eighteen, writing: "Zendaya acts her ass off front to back as she begins the episode with a blistering fight with her mother before spiraling into a prolonged chase sequence and eventually falling into the clutches of a potentially evil drug dealer."[8]IndieWire placed it at seventh in a list which included the first episode of season three, writing that the episode "rests almost entirely on the actor’s ability to portray Rue hitting rock bottom in a believable, sympathetic way, it kicks off with the best scene in all of season 2".[9]
In a four out of five star review, The Independent descrbed "Stand Still Like the Hummingbird" as "a heartbreaking, standout episode that all but guarantees Zendaya another Emmy", writing: "Euphoria needed an episode like this. For one thing, creator Sam Levinson finally slows his roll. The camera – which typically glides, swoops, and whip pans – takes a breath." Journalist for the piece Annabel Nugent also praised Reid's performance as "entirely convincing".[10] Fletcher Peters of Decider lauded the episode's cold open as "one of the best opening scenes in Euphoria history."[11]
Jezebel commented that "Zendaya is an absolute tour de force" in the episode, saying "she becomes entirely unrecognizable."[12] A writer at Refinery29 said the episode made them stop watching the series, writing that "["Stand Still Like the Hummingbird"] leans into this sense of fear wrapped in a prestige TV bow to an almost unnecessary degree, ultimately equating trauma with importance."[13]
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