After its HBO debut, The Idol quickly made waves for its controversial sex scenes and cringy storytelling.
Before the series premiered in June 2023, Rolling Stone reported that The Idol was “delayed” due to a poor working environment and last-minute script rewrites. More than a dozen sources were contacted for the March 2023 exposé, which claimed that co-creators Sam Levinson and The Weeknd contributed to the toxic work environment.
HBO addressed the show’s delays and personnel changes — Amy Seimetz was originally tapped to direct all episodes — in a statement to Variety. “The initial approach on the show and production of the early episodes, unfortunately, did not meet HBO standards so we chose to make a change,” the network stated. “Throughout the process, the creative team has been committed to creating a safe, collaborative, and mutually respectful working environment, and last year, the team made creative changes they felt were in the best interest of both the production and the cast and crew.”
As the production raised eyebrows, The Weeknd (whose real name is Abel Tesfaye) fired back by sharing a clip from the then-unreleased pilot in which his character Tedros mocked Rolling Stone.
“Rolling Stone has 6 million followers on Instagram, half of them probably bots. And Jocelyn has 78 million followers, all real I’d assume,” he said, referring to Lily-Rose Depp‘s character. “So she does a photo shoot, she tags them, they get her followers. More money for Rolling Stone, nothing for Jocelyn.”
The Idol focuses on an aspiring pop idol named Jocelyn who enters a tumultuous relationship with self-help guru and cult leader Tedros. Throughout their relationship, Tedros attempts to help Jocelyn find her way back to the top in Hollywood following a nervous breakdown.
Lily-Rose, who is the daughter of actor Johnny Depp and model Vanessa Paradis, has publicly defended her decision to work with Levinson and The Weeknd.
“Never have I felt more supported or respected in a creative space, my input and opinions more valued,” the actress shared in a March 2023 statement. “Working with Sam is a true collaboration in every way — it matters to him, more than anything, not only what his actors think about the work, but how we feel performing it. He hires people whose work he esteems and has always created an environment in which I felt seen, heard, and appreciated.”
When The Idol finally premiered three months later, viewers criticized its awkward depiction of sex on screen. The Weeknd, however, was quick to point out that the moments were meant to be interpreted as satire.
“There’s nothing sexy about it. When we use Basic Instinct as a reference, we’re using [Paul] Verhoeven. Verhoeven is the king of ‘90s satire thriller — yes, there’s moments of ‘sexy’ in his films, but there are other moments that are very cheesy and hilarious,” the singer told GQ in June 2023. “How ever you’re feeling watching that scene, whether it’s discomfort, or you feel gross, or you feel embarrassed for the characters. It’s all those emotions adding up to: This guy is in way over his head, this situation is one where he is not supposed to be here. You look at him, and this is a score — Jocelyn might be the biggest score he’s ever had. It’s very obvious.”
Thank You!
You have successfully subscribed.
The “Blinding Lights” singer continued: “He’s over-indulging, he walks into this house looking around like, ‘Goddamn, am I way over my head? This can be the biggest job I’ve ever done.’ Whatever it is that he’s doing. Even the sex, it’s so gluttonous, especially in episode 2. ‘Gluttony’ is the only word I can think of [to describe it]. He can’t believe he’s there. He comes off like such a loser. Those moments are the humanity that you find in a psychopath, the chink in his armor.”
Scroll below for a breakdown of the cringiest sex scenes from HBO’s The Idol:
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tr%2FMmp6aspmjsm%2BvzqZmnqakmr%2B1rcinpJ6mpGS9qq%2FTrqmeq1%2BptaZ5yJ2mpatdqLK5edKcnKedo2KubrPUopueZaSkerW0xGafm6ddqLWww9Jmmquhnpy2pr%2FTZqSopZWjwbR7