by Abel “the Weeknd” to which Tesfaye responded Rolling stone‘s report claims his highly anticipated HBO show, The idol, “is wildly, disgustingly derailed.” But the superstar didn’t refute some of the article’s disturbing claims — such as that he and co-creator, Euphoria‘s Sam Levinson, are making a series depicting “sexual torture porn” – but instead fired off a video calling the publication uncool. While sources tell Yahoo Entertainment that some of the content in the RS story is “quite accurate”, others paint a different picture of what goes on behind the scenes.
On Wednesday afternoon, Tesfaye tweeted a fragment of The idol of his and Lily-Rose calling Depp’s characters RS “irrelevant.” In the series, the singer plays a modern-day cult leader named Tedros, while Depp is Jocelyn, his pop star love interest. The clip shows them talking to a type of cop (played by Dan Levy) who tries to convince Jocelyn to do a cover for the magazine.
“I feel like it might be a little past its peak,” says Jocelyn.
“Yeah, nobody cares Rolling stone‘ adds Tedros.
Tesfaye, who has more than 17 million followers on Twitter RS and wrote, “Did we upset you?”
Depp shared the same video on her Instagram account.
So, what exactly confused the actors? Let’s unpack all the drama surrounding it The idol.
Rolling stone claims The idol is in turmoil – and the content is disturbing
on Wednesday morning, RS posted his story”The idol: How HBO’s Next Euphoria Became Twisted ‘Torture Porn.'” The article featured interviews with 13 members of the show’s cast and crew, all of whom remained anonymous. They spoke of the alleged havoc that has ensued since Levinson took over from director Amy Seimetz during a shake-up last spring.
“It was, shall we say, a show,” one person claimed.
While the article describes how the production was plagued with reshoots and rewrites, causing serious delays, the troubling allegations relate to the shift in content.
Four sources claimed that Levinson created a humiliating love story that several crew members found offensive. Seimetz’s version was more about “a troubled starlet who falls victim to a predatory industry figure and fights to reclaim her own agency”. Now, one production member claimed, “It was like any rape fantasy any toxic man would have on the show — and then the woman comes back for more because it makes her music better.”
Here’s one of the more concerning excerpts from the story:
At several points, Levinson’s scripts contained disturbing sexual and physically violent scenes between Depp’s and Tesfaye’s characters, three sources familiar with the matter claim. In a concept episode, there was reportedly a scene where Tesfaye punches Depp’s face, and her character smiles and asks to be spanked more, giving Tesfaye an erection. (This scene was never shot, the source says.) Another proposed scenario was that Depp would be carrying an egg in her vagina and if she dropped or broke the egg, Tesfaye’s character would refuse to “rape” her – causing the character of Depp spiraled and begged him to “rape” her because she believed him to be the key to her success. (This scene was also not filmed because the production couldn’t find a way to realistically film the scene without Depp physically inserting the egg, another source explains.)
Yes, The idol was “quite chaotic”
A source with knowledge of production issues over the past two years admits to Yahoo that the set was “quite chaotic” at times, leaving some cast and crew members “increasingly frustrated.” Yahoo spoke to two people who have the RS article “pretty accurate” with emphasis on, “Yeah, it’s been a s***show sometimes.”
However, a network source counters, telling Yahoo that while some of what has been written for the show “pushes boundaries”, it is “unfair” to categorize the show as “sexual torture porn”.
“Sure, it makes a good headline, but there’s no way all these 13 ‘sources’ have seen a finished product,” the insider explains.
This isn’t the first time Levinson has faced criticism
Last year, in the middle of EuphoriaIn Levinson’s hugely successful second season, Levinson became the subject of criticism, as critics claimed the show featured too much unnecessary teen nudity. Days on set were reportedly long and exhausting. It took two years for viewers to get a second season, as the direction of the season seemed to change a lot in real time. Even Levinson has admitted that his “writing process is pretty bizarre”.
Actress Barbie Ferreira, whose body-positive character Kat was a big part of Euphoria‘s first season, reportedly “stormed” the set and Levinson cut back on her screen time after they disagreed over her Kat’s arc. Actress Sydney Sweeney told a reporter she had to cut back some unnecessary shirtless scenes and guest star Minka Kelly confirmed that she asked Levinson to change a scripted nude scene because she didn’t feel “comfortable” with it.
The Weeknd “is happy” with Levinson and the new direction The idol
A source tells Yahoo there is “no conflict” between Tesfaye and Levinson. In fact, the musician thinks Levinson’s vision for their show is better than the direction Seimetz took The idol.
That is somewhat similar to a deadline report from April, when signs of internal strife first reached the public, claiming that Tesfaye wanted a creative overhaul because he felt the show leaned too much towards a “female perspective.” However, the insider close to the production tells Yahoo “it’s not exactly accurate” to categorize the problems he had that way.
“The show is still very much about [Lily-Rose’s] character and she has been an integral part of the creative process,” the source adds.
Lily-Rose Depp speaks out
Aside from sharing the clip, the actress released a statement in support of Levinson amid the RS drama.
“Sam is, for so many reasons, the best director I’ve ever worked with. Never have I felt more supported or respected in a creative space, more valued for my input and opinions,” she tells Yahoo. “Working with Sam is a real collaboration in every way – it’s more important to him than anything, not just what his actors think of the work, but also how we feel when we perform it. He hires people from whom he the work appreciates and always has an environment where I felt seen, heard and valued.”
HBO is ready The idolat
A spokesperson for the network issued the following statement to Yahoo:
The creators and producers of The idol have worked hard to create one of HBO’s most exciting and provocative original programs. Unfortunately, the initial approach to the show and production of the early episodes was not up to HBO standards, so we chose to make a change. Throughout the process, the creative team has been committed to creating a safe, collaborative and mutually respectful work environment, and last year the team made creative changes that they believed were in the best interests of both the production and the cast and crew. We look forward to sharing The Idol with the public soon.
And Rolling stone backs his report
Editor-in-chief Noah Shachtman responded to Tesfaye’s tweet, “Did we upset you?”.
