HBO’s new drama The Idol has certainly been met with a great deal of criticism, and it has now been revealed that the show will finish with episode five, despite it originally being reported to have six episodes in total.
The fifth episode is titled Jocelyn Forever, and will serve as the show’s finale. While HBO has declined to comment on why the series is finishing early, a source told TVLine that the show only required five episodes after Euphoria creator Sam Levinson was brought on to make changes, with a large portion of the show being reshot.
The show, which stars Johnny Depp’s daughter Lily-Rose Depp as a pop star, has been met with a great deal of controversy of its graphic content, so much so that The New York Post reported that it is already not being renewed for season two.
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However, HBO released a statement about the situation, which read: "It is being misreported that a decision on a second season of The Idol has been determined. It has not, and we look forward to sharing the next episode with you Sunday night."
The story follows Lily Rose as Jocelyn, a pop star who begins a "romance with an enigmatic L.A. club owner who is the leader of a secret cult", played by the Weeknd.
Speaking about her role, and how it compared to her own life growing up with famous parents, Lily Rose told EW: "The backstory that we thought about a lot for Jocelyn is that she's somebody who's been working basically since she could talk. She was a child actress, she had a mother who was really pushy in that way and really kind of bred her to be this trained performer, and that was her upbringing. That was certainly not mine.
"I mean, my parents definitely did their best to give my brother and I the most 'normal' childhood that we could have. Obviously, still not totally normal, but a sense of normalcy at least, and a sense of childhood and freedom and play and everything.
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"So our childhoods are quite different. Of course, experiencing this industry from a young age, there are obviously pieces of that help me understand maybe Jocelyn's perspective a little bit better, but still, definitely coming from different places."
Viewers have taken to Twitter to discuss the show, with one writing: "Every time there’s a moment where I’m kinda enjoying #TheIdol, The Weeknd’s character comes along to take up all of the oxygen in the room and ruins it. I so badly wish we had gotten the original version of this show," while another person added: "How in the hell is Jocelyn allowing this… man to dominate her life in like 3 days???? This show is so unreal. If you want a dominating, cult leader, you at least have to convince the audience that anyone would fall for him. Tedros has none of that."