Sam Levinson’s ‘The Idol’ has sent the internet into chaos! Even before its release, the series got embroiled in controversy over its content. Amy Seimetz was roped in to helm the ambitious project, but Sam Levinson replaced her. He took complete charge of the script, which led to rewriting and reshooting many sequences. The production and crew members deemed the series borderline ‘p****graphic.’
‘The Idol’ is the story of Jocelyn, played by Lily-Rose Depp, who is spiraling after her mother’s death. The pop star is looking to revive her career, and she meets a mystic, LA club owner Tedros. He takes her through an arduous, sensuous journey to perfect her craft. The first two episodes of the series are not, and the critics and audience have equally slammed it for its hyper-sexualization and misrepresentation of mental health. After such a strong reaction, HBO is reportedly not going ahead with season two of the series.
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‘The Idol’ Was Never Meant To Be A Long Running Show As Per A Source
‘The Idol’ premiered on June 4, 2023, on HBO. After the two episodes, the audience is convinced that Sam has created another sexually driven project to titillate the audience by objectifying the protagonist.
The first two episodes are mere aestheticizations of pain and glorify the dark side of the industry instead of its initial plan to satirize it. Due to these reasons, the show’s viewership dropped to only 800,000 viewers.
A source informed Page Six that ‘The Idol’ was supposed to be a limited series. The source said, “This was never meant to be a long-running show; it was always…a limited series.”
‘The Idol’ became the most-watched show when the first episode aired. Despite the dip in viewership in the second episode, HBO is still optimistic. A source told the Daily Mail, “HBO is optimistic about the performance and continued growth of The Idol. As with many first-season shows still airing, no decision has been made about a season two yet.”
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Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye Reacts To The S** Scene From The Second Episode
The second episode of ‘The Idol’ gave us a peep at the humane side of the characters. Jocelyn tries to remix her new song with sexually charged background noises, but her manager rejects the idea. She breaks down during the shoot of the video for ‘Freak.’ Jocelyn searches for her mother to console her, but Chaim and Destiny, her other managers, stand with her, becoming her parents.
But the second half of the episode features a fetish-driven make-out scene that feels like two first-timers are exploring their sexuality. It did not have any aesthetic feel, nor was it required in the episode. The scene disgusted viewers and critics. But Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye defended it, saying that the intimate scene is not sexy.
During an interview with GQ, Abel said, “There’s nothing sexy about it. However 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.”
Talking about the second episode scene, he deemed it gluttonous. The Weeknd continued, “The sex, it’s so gluttonous. Especially in Episode 2. ‘Gluttony’ is the only word I can think of [to describe it]. [Tedros] 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.”
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