Thought Euphoria was debauched? Wait until you get a load of what its co-creator, Sam Levinson, has been working on.
‘The sleaziest love story in all of Hollywood’ is quite a bold claim for a brand new series to start throwing around, but given Levinson’s previous form, it’s probably justified. And the trailer for The Idol certainly sets up the stall for the new HBO show: hot young things writhing around by a pool, in parties, in strip clubs; spraying Champagne and racking up lines; literal pants being dropped and steamy sex scenes against the illuminating backdrop of La La Land by night.
The teaser trailer (interestingly soundtracked by Justice’s Planisphère, Nu-Rave fans) was dropped by The Weeknd (aka Abel Tesfaye) during his After Hours Til Dawn concert on July 16. As well as starring in the series, he’s also co-creator of the show, alongside Levinson and Reza Fahim. The trio say that the idea comes from their “sick and twisted minds”.
The Idol plot details
While the show is currently being hyped to the hilt, there’s still relatively little known about it so far. One synopsis says: “A self-help guru and leader of a modern-day cult enters a complicated relationship with a rising pop idol.” So it’s probably safe to bet that The Weeknd is playing the guru and that Lily-Rose Depp – in what’s probably going to be her breakthrough hit as lead – plays the young pop ingenue, Jocelyn. Depp is, of course, the daughter of Johnny Depp and, handily for her character research, former French teen pop star, Vanessa Paradis.
Like the focus of The Weeknd’s previous work on his albums and live tours, the series is likely to reveal the dark underbelly of Hollywood and the music industry, zoning in on the toxic and exploitative nature of it, and the whole culture of celebrity and fame in itself.
Who's in The Idol cast?
Once you’ve got over what looks like perfect casting with the leads, there’s a stellar – and diverse – supporting cast to go with it. For the Gen Zers, there’s YouTube singer Troye Sivan and Jennie Kim from Blackpink. Then there’s Hari Nef (Transparent, And Just Like That…) and former Disney star Debby Ryan. As it’s based in the music industry, it only makes sense to pull in some actual musicians too; so expect to see Tunde Adebimpe from TV On The Radio, Tyson Ritter from All-American Rejects and other muso-cameos.
A second teaser trailer released in August 2022, again at The Weeknd’s gig, and it revealed even more stars were part of the project:
Among the new haul of actors are Dan Levy, Eli Roth, Hank Azaria (yes, the voice of Homer Simpson), Moses Sumney, Mike Dean, Suzanna Son and Da’Vine Joy Randolph.
The late Anne Heche was meant to be starring in the series as well, but after her fatal car crash in August, there has been no update from the production. As it stands, it looks like it could be her first posthumous appearance.
What else have people said about it so far?
According to Variety, Francesca Orsi, executive vice president of HBO Programming is pumped: “When the multi-talented Abel ‘The Weeknd’ Tesfaye, Reza Fahim and Sam Levinson brought us ‘The Idol,’ it was clear their subversive, revelatory take on the cult of the music industry was unlike anything HBO had ever done before.”
Is there a release date for The Idol?
HBO has now confirmed that The Idol will premiere June 4th in the US. In the UK, it will be available on Sky Atlantic in June. The network also released yet another trailer, which you can watch below.
