New Report Claims HBO’s Dark Upcoming Drama ‘The Idol’ Has Turned Toxic

Update, March 1, 5:20 p.m. ET: The Weeknd has spoken. Hours after Rolling Stone published its piece detailing alleged behind-the-scenes issues on HBO’s The Idol, one of its stars and co-creators has seemingly refuted the claims. The musician shared what appears to be a clip from the series, featuring himself and co-stars Lily-Rose Depp and Dan Levy, in which his character calls the publication “a little irrelevant.” Depp’s character adds that it “might be kind of past its prime.”  The Weeknd’s character continues, “Yeah, nobody cares about Rolling Stone,” before guessing that half of the outlet’s 6 million followers are “probably bots.” (In real-life, the publication has 7 million Instagram followers.) “@rollingstone did we upset you?” he captioned his post.

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When the first footage from HBO’s The Idol was released in July 2022, it was billed as “the sleaziest love story in all of Hollywood” from “the sick and twisted minds of the creator of Euphoria, Sam Levinson, and Abel ‘The Weeknd’ Tesfaye.” Now, sources have told Rolling Stone that production has been marred by ballooning budgets, creative discord, and “near-impossible expectations.”  

The series faced a major hurdle last April when director Amy Seimetz (The Girlfriend Experience, Atlanta) departed the show, reportedly after about 80% of the six-episode project had already been completed. At the time, Deadline reported that Tesfaye, who’s credited as a cocreator and who stars as a cult leader alongside Lily-Rose Depp’s floundering pop star, felt the show was favoring the “female perspective” too strongly.

According to Rolling Stone, Levinson, who recently won the Directors Guild of America Award for outstanding direction in a drama series for HBO’s Euphoria, has since overhauled the $54 million–$75 million series, and sources told the outlet that the show’s central theme has shifted. “What I signed up for was a dark satire of fame and the fame model in the 21st century,” one production member told the outlet. “The things that we subject our talent and stars to, the forces that put people in the spotlight and how that can be manipulated in the post-Trump world.” However, they added, “It went from satire to the thing it was satirizing.” One source claimed the show was a toxic fantasy where a woman undergoes trauma, “and then the woman comes back for more because it makes her music better.”

In a statement to Vanity Fair, HBO forcefully denied that the project was toxic, and stated that a showrunner switch was made because early episodes “did not meet HBO standards.” Its full statement reads: “The creators and producers of The Idol have been working hard to create one of HBO’s most exciting and provocative original programs. 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. 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. We look forward to sharing The Idol with audiences soon.”

Levinson has weathered his share of controversies as creator of Euphoria, with stars Sydney Sweeney, Minka Kelly, and Martha Kelly all saying they expressed discomfort with some nudity or sexually explicit scenes to him last season, though each said the director embraced their concerns and changed the scenes. Rolling Stone’s sources on The Idol detailed graphic, sexual scenes that were in at least the script phase of production, with one person comparing them to “sexual torture porn.”

In a statement to Vanity Fair, Depp praised Levinson’s leadership skills, calling him “the best director I have ever worked with.” She continued, “Never have I felt more supported or respected in a creative space, my input and opinions more valued. Working with Sam is a true collaboration in every way—it matters to him, more than anything, not only what 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.” 

The show, which is set to costar Troye Sivan, Rachel Sennott, Dan Levy, and Blackpink’s Jennie, whose role is said to be limited, was originally slated for release last fall, at some point after the October House of the Dragon finale, according to a Rolling Stone source. A new date has not yet been announced.

Vanity Fair has reached out to reps for Levinson, The Weeknd, and Seimetz for additional comment.