The Idol Reviews Are Here, And Critics Have Strong Opinions About Lily-Rose Depp And The Weeknd’s Controversial HBO Drama
The upcoming series premiered at Cannes Film Festival.
Sam Levinson is known for pushing the boundaries with his graphic depictions of sex, nudity and drug use on the popular drama Euphoria, so it’s no surprise that his newest project — the upcoming HBO series The Idol — is already stirring up controversy due to its explicit content. The director took over the project when it was almost finished, scrapping most of it and shifting the script’s narrative into what crew members have called “torture porn.” The reviews are in, after the first two episodes were screened at Cannes Film Festival, so let’s see what they think after all the changes to the series and reported issues.
The Idol stars Lily-Rose Depp as aspiring pop star Jocelyn and Abel Tesfaye (aka The Weeknd, who also co-created the series) as the sex cult leader she becomes involved with. Depp seemed to be having the best time with her colleagues at the premiere in France, and Deadline reports the show got a 5-minute standing ovation from the Cannes crowd, but what do the critics have to say?
Richard Lawson of Vanity Fair says while the show seems to take itself pretty seriously — and is certainly going for a shock factor — the stakes don’t seem that high after the first two episodes, with some of the dialogue coming off as awkward and prosaic. The critic continues:
Damon Wise of Deadline isn’t sure exactly where the series is headed after the first two episodes — probably somewhere nasty — but Lily-Rose Depp is “riveting,” Wise writes:
Douglas Greenwood of Vogue agrees that Lily-Rose Depp is excellent in a performance that requires a lot, physically and emotionally, and says the series will likely be polarizing in the same way as Euphoria. From the review:
David Fear of Rolling Stone argues that The Idol is way worse than the buzz that has preceded it, as Sam Levinson mistakes toxicity for complexity and crude caricatures for sharp satire. He continues:
Lovia Gyarkye of THR is not the only critic to say that there’s nothing erotic about Lily-Rose Depp and The Weeknd’s sex scenes, and the critic says The Idol is frustrating in that it shows glimpses of potential when it’s not trying so hard to be shocking. More from the review:
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Caspar Salmon of the Daily Beast says The Idol is straight-up “bad,” questioning why The Weeknd’s character is not objectified in the same way as Lily-Rose Depp’s. The critic accuses Sam Levinson’s series of giving a “self-excusing presentation of rape culture," continuing:
It sounds like Sam Levinson delivers as promised on shock value with The Idol, but how much the rest of the series comes together — and how problematic viewers find it — remains to be seen. The show will premiere at 9 p.m. ET Sunday, June 4, and can be streamed with an HBO Max subscription (now just called Max).
Heidi Venable is a Content Producer for CinemaBlend, a mom of two and a hard-core '90s kid. She started freelancing for CinemaBlend in 2020 and officially came on board in 2021. Her job entails writing news stories and TV reactions from some of her favorite prime-time shows like Grey's Anatomy and The Bachelor. She graduated from Louisiana Tech University with a degree in Journalism and worked in the newspaper industry for almost two decades in multiple roles including Sports Editor, Page Designer and Online Editor. Unprovoked, will quote Friends in any situation. Thrives on New Orleans Saints football, The West Wing and taco trucks.