HBO is no stranger when it comes to controversy surrounding some of its biggest shows over the years, be it something as harmless as a coffee cup in Game of Thrones or as severe as a show like Luck being cancelled due to multiple horses dying on set. And then there have been controversies and scandals that fall somewhere in the middle of those two, like the much talked about The Idol starring Lily-Rose Depp and The Weeknd that will navigate Los Angeles with all its fame, fortune, excess, and debauchery.
First announced around a year-and-a-half ago, the show has faced all kinds of issues, including a large portion of the cast and crew either being written out or replaced entirely, a staggering number of reports alleging creative issues on set, and a vast revamping of the show after much of it had already been filmed. So much has gone on since the show was announced that keeping track of it all is admittedly a little daunting. Well, fear not, because we have put together a timeline of all the changes and reported issues with The Idol.
The Idol Was Given A Six-Episode Series Order In November 2021
Back in November 2021, The Hollywood Reporter reported that HBO was picking up a new drama series created by The Weeknd (real name Abel Tesfaye) alongside his producing partner, Reza Fahim, and Euphoria creator Sam Levinson, giving the show a six-episode order. At the time, it was also announced that Lily-Rose Depp would star as an aspiring pop star who would get wrapped up in the world of Tesfaye’s character, best described as a self-help guru and leader of a cult.
All seemed to be moving along fine at the time, with The Girlfriend Experience’s Amy Seimetz coming on to direct all six episodes, as well as a cast that was filling out with some notable stars outside of the two leads. But, this wouldn’t last, as the show was about to be met by a series of controversies, scandals, and major changes.
Amy Seimetz Left The Idol As Part Of A Major April 2022 Creative Overhaul
In April 2022, less than six months after the show received the green light from HBO, and after multiple episodes had reportedly been completed, Variety reported that The Idol was in the middle of a major creative overhaul. In a statement, the network said:
The Idol’s creative team continues to build, refine, and evolve their vision for the show and they have aligned on a new creative direction. The production will be adjusting its cast and crew accordingly to best serve this new approach to the series. We look forward to sharing more information soon.
Though HBO initially declined to share information on which members of the production were departing the series, it was later revealed that Amy Seimetz was no longer serving as director. Furthermore, the details about the changes coming to the production were not laid out at the time, but that would soon change.
Sam Levinson Took Over The Creative Direction Following Seimetz’s Departure
The news about The Idol’s major creative overhaul came in bursts in the days following the April 2022 announcement, with one of the biggest having to do with who would be sitting in the director’s chair for the remainder of the production. In late April 2022, shortly after it was announced that Amy Seimetz would be leaving The Idol after filming much of the series, it was believed that Sam Levinson would have more of a role in directing the show, according to Deadline.
The decision to have Levinson take over for the departing Seimetz seemingly made perfect sense, considering he co-created the show and had also directed much of Euphoria, a show that featured Emmy-winning performances and its fair share of controversies since its 2019 debut.
One Of The Issues Reportedly Revolved Around The Idol Leaning Too Much Into A ‘Female Perspective’
Around the same time The Weeknd was closing out the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in late April 2022, details about The Idol’s production began to surface, with sources telling Deadline that one of the main issues was the Grammy-winning artist’s belief that the show was leaving too much into a “female perspective,” meaning that that focus was being put on Lily-Rose Depp’s character, and her journey, opposed to his own.
This is believed to be one of the major reasons behind the massive reshoots that would take place following the major creative overhaul.
In March 2023, News Surfaced That The Weeknd Reportedly Wanted To Tone Down The Cult Aspect
In March 2023, Rolling Stone published a sprawling feature on The Idol and its behind-the-scenes issues that featured comments from more than a dozen unnamed sources from the production. Included in the sprawling profile was a section about the show’s original tone, and how The Weeknd was reportedly the reason behind the massive April 2022 overhaul. Among the multi-talented artist’s issues with the show were the aforementioned “female perspective” and the cult aspects of the narrative.
According to the source, The Weeknd allegedly wanted to tone down the cult aspect of the storyline and pivot to a “show that was all about him.” And Sam Levinson was reportedly on board with that request.
Crew Members Spoke Out About The Show’s Tone, Saying It Went From ‘Satire To The Thing It Was Satirizing’
The Weeknd’s reported desire to change the cult aspect of The Idol wasn’t the only problem addressed in the Rolling Stone piece. In fact, it was just a small portion of the massive exposé. Earlier in the article, another unnamed source alleged that the entire tone changed once Sam Levinson took over the project in spring of the previous year, implying that what was once satire became anything but:
What I signed up for was a dark satire of fame and the fame model in the 21st century. 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. It went from satire to the thing it was satirizing.
Multiple sources also noted that Levinson scrapped Amy Seimetz’s approach to the story, stripping away the main female character’s fight to reclaim her own agency and instead replacing it with a degrading love story.
HBO Later Said The Original Version Of The Show ‘Did Not Meet’ The Network’s ‘Standards’
Unsurprisingly, the Rolling Stone article led to an enormous amount of coverage and conversations regarding The Idol and its myriad of issues. Not long after the piece was first published, also in March 2023, HBO released a statement (via BuzzFeed News) in which the network claimed that an earlier version of the show “did not meet HBO standards,” which led to the massive overhaul:
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.
A similar statement from Lily-Rose Depp claimed that Sam Levinson was “the best director” she had ever worked with and that she had never “felt more supported or respected in a creative space.” The Weeknd would also respond on Twitter with a brief clip from the show where his character calls Rolling Stone “a little irrelevant,” along with a caption reading, “Rolling Stone, did we upset you?”
The Idol is set to premiere June 4th on HBO and will be available for anyone with an HBO Max subscription. If you want to know about other shows coming out this year, check out our 2023 TV schedule.
