What is The Idol, that series presented at Cannes starring The Weeknd and Lily-Rose Depp?
On Monday, May 22nd, the first two episodes of The Idol premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. And the series is already in full swing…
The screening of: will be shown this Monday at the Grand Théâtre Lumière the idol provoked many reactions. And not just good ones… The “disturbing” nature of the latest HBO production speaks.
The Idol was directed by Sam Levinson (director of The Idol).euphoria), produced by Reza Fahim and eventually co-produced and co-written by singer Abel Tesfaye aka The Weeknd. He also wrote the series’ narrative framework, which, moreover, is directly inspired by the ascendant and then decadent development of Britney Spears. The singer is quoted in the first episode. The summary is as follows: After her recent tour marred by a nervous breakdown, Jocelyn (Lily Rose Depp) is determined to reclaim her title as America’s sexiest pop star. Tedros (The Weeknd), a nightclub owner with a troubled past, rekindles her flame. Will this new romance take her to the top of her game, or will it shake her to the bottom of her soul?
Also Read: Cannes Film Festival: Who Was the Real Jeanne du Barry?
The reviews
The miniseries is intended to take a look behind the scenes of the music industry and has been criticized by the media (at least for the first two episodes) for deviating from musical considerations and focusing more on the pop star’s relationship with Tedros and the power he wields she has focused. “Disturbing scenes”, “hypersexualization of women”, “promoting the culture of rape”, the dramatic satire is already scandalous. She has been described in the press as “scaly and extremely sexualized” (France Info), from “cheap and unhealthy adult television film” (TF1 info) , and for diversity The series even looks like a “dirty male fantasy”. One reaction during the screening was particularly shocking: During an approach between Jocelyn and Tedros, the young woman’s assistant warned her: “This guy reeks of rape‘, but Jocelyn replies, ‘I like it, that’s what I like about him“. Many articles also reveal the disastrous events behind the scenes of the series. A survey by the American magazine Rolling Stone showed that also reports a “chaotic and out of control” shoot. In her opinion, it is “a humiliating love story with a hollow message”.
In the face of all of this criticism, Sam Levinson retorted “We knew we were going to put on a provocative show” before proceeding”They are free to write whatever they want. The only problem is that they left out everything that didn’t fit the story they wanted to tell..” In any case, the Euphoria showrunner bragged to his wife. “We’re going to see the biggest series of the summer “. Lily Rose Depp praised the director in front of the American press. “He’s the best director I’ve ever worked with for many reasons. I have never felt so supported and respected in a creative environment and my contributions and opinions have never been so valued.”
June 5th the idol airs on Prime Video for Warner Pass members.
