The Weeknd addresses ‘The Idol’ reshoots: “I sacrificed my health and home to make it work”

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer HBO’s buzzy new original series “The Idol” has been steadily building momentum on the road to its June 4 debut — including a lavish world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, followed by one of the most talked-about afterparties on the Croisette. The show follows an embattled young pop star named Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp), recovering from a psychotic break after the death of her mother and hounded relentlessly by industry vultures that need her back on top. A sketchy Svengali named Tedros (Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye) appears in her life, promising artistic and sexual liberation and fame beyond her wildest dreams. “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson steers the show with co-creators Tesfaye and Reza Fahim.

Wow! The word out of Cannes was pretty strong about the show that’s supposed to be HBO‘s next big thing. What we heard was mostly about how graphic and sexually explicit it was — but apparently that’s nothing compared to how BAD it is??

The Weeknd opened up about his new drama series “The Idol” as the first two episodes premiered at Cannes Film Festival on Monday.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter One of the most talked-about titles at this year’s Cannes Film Festival isn’t a movie, but a TV show. “The Idol,” a scandalous, sexy and sure-to-be-polarizing series (think “Euphoria” but set in the world of pop music) about the price of fame, premiered two of the first five episodes at the festival and instantly inspired a thousand hot-takes about all that on-screen nudity, bodily fluids and Hollywood sycophants. But before “The Idol” — the brainchild of “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson and Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye — even made its way to the Croisette, an explosive report by Rolling Stone detailed on-set turmoil, including allegations of a toxic work environment, last-minute script rewrites and budgets gone wild.

Lord, give me strength. From the first minute of “The Idol,” the already controversial music-based television series from HBO Max (sorry, Max), it’s clear that creators Abel Tesfaye (formerly known as The Weeknd), Sam Levinson, and Reza Fahim want to incite a reaction.

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic What The Weeknd wants, The Weeknd gets in “The Idol,” a skintastic, dark-side-of-showbiz fable that perpetuates the myth that pop stars are corporate puppets with no say in their own image-making, even as it allows hit-maker The Weeknd to call the shots (and reshoots, apparently, since the five-part HBO series was overhauled late in production to suit him). Picture “Blonde” as Joe Eszterhas might have written it, but with better music. After making a toe-dip cameo as himself in A24’s “Uncut Gems,” the R&B phenom-turned-TV producer plunges head-first into acting here, teaming with “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson to imagine a shady super-predator just looking to corrupt an unsuspecting young pop singer. The edgy, high-gloss HBO series, which premiered the first two of its five episodes at the Cannes Film Festival, demands a lot of star Lily-Rose Depp. She plays “rags-to-riches, trailers-to-mansions” Jocelyn, a mono-monikered Britney or Miley type who seems empowered one moment, impressionable the next.

CANNES (Reuters) - "The Idol," HBO's much-hyped new series from the creator of "Euphoria" that bills itself as the "sleaziest love story in all of Hollywood," premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on Monday. Travis Scott, Stella Maxwell and Julia Fox, wrapped in a plastic gown and wearing dark lipstick, joined Lily-Rose Depp and Abel Tesfaye, the stars of the show, on the red carpet, surrounded by screaming fans who packed the Croisette boulevard. Depp - whose famous father, Johnny Depp, also had a premiere at the festival - stars as Jocelyn, a pop singer trying to stage a sexier-than-ever comeback after suffering a nervous breakdown.

The Weeknd and Lily-Rose Depp shut down the Croisette to show the price of fame — and plenty of raunchy intrigue — at the Cannes premiere of “The Idol” on Monday. Making direct parallels to superstar meltdowns like the one suffered by Britney Spears, the HBO Original series finally revealed itself at a packed gala screening. Revenge porn photos of bodily fluids on Depp’s face, masturbation with ice cubes, nightclub-owning scam artists and vile Hollywood sycophants populated the first two episodes of the already-controversial series. Co-created by Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, Reza Fahim and “Euphoria” visionary Sam Levinson, “The Idol” centers on an aspiring pop star named Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp) who gets taken under the wing of a self-help guru (Tesfaye) amid her ascent in the music industry. Tesfaye’s character, Tedros, is a modern day cult leader. The supporting cast includes Suzanna Son, Troye Sivan, Dan Levy, Rachel Sennott and more.

The stars of HBO’s highly-anticipated new series The Idol have arrived at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival!

The Weeknd has responded to a Lady Gaga meme that has gone viral has he announced the change of his stage name.This week, the Canadian pop star – real name Abel Tesfaye – announced that he was retiring his stage name and will be known from now by his birth name. It came after he vowed to “kill” his alter-ego.Last month, he shared a tweet reading: “ABEL formally known as The Weeknd?” and this week (May 15) then changed his social media profiles to the name Abel Tesfaye.Since then, fans have been reacting to the news on social media, with one Lady Gaga meme dominating the conversation.In one tweet, a fan shared the caption: “The assistant in the record store when I ask if they have any Abel Tesfaye albums in stock,” alongside a video of Lady Gaga performing the song ‘Babylon’ live, in which she sings: “We only have the weekend.”Tesfaye shared his love for the meme, replying with the crying laughing emoji.

The Weeknd is speaking out against criticism surrounding his upcoming HBO Max series,, addressing creative shakeups and a lengthy report alleging that production had «gone wildly, disgustingly off the rails.»The 33-year-old pop star-turned-series creator opens up in a profile for 's new issue, on newsstands May 30, responding candidly to a March article claiming that behind-the-scenes turmoil on the set included chaotic scheduling, going over budget and last-minute script changes and overhauls on graphically violent and sexual scenes.By his estimation, The Weeknd — whose birth name is Abel Tesfaye — now says he interpreted the report's subtext as, «These are rapists trying to make a rape fantasy.»At the time the allegations were first published, Tesfayeresponded by sharing a clip from the show in which his character deems «irrelevant.» «I thought the article was ridiculous,» Tesfaye tells. «I wanted to give a ridiculous response to it.»Meanwhile, Tesfaye remains unapologetic about the source material for the show.

The Weeknd has changed his name across social media, following comments that he wanted to “kill” his alter-ego.The Canadian pop star rolled out the new title on his social media platforms yesterday (May 15), and now goes by his birth name Abel Tesfaye, instead of The Weeknd.He first posed the idea to his fans and followers on Twitter last month (April 3), when he shared an update reading: “ABEL formally known as The Weeknd?”. Currently, the tweet has over 124,000 likes and a substantial amount of replies, with fans sharing their thoughts on the change of name.The R&B singer also announced his intentions to switch names earlier this month, when he admitted that he wanted to “close The Weekend chapter”, and continue his creative endeavours under the new title.​​”I’m going through a cathartic path right now… It’s getting to a place and time where I’m getting ready to close The Weeknd chapter,” he told W Magazine.

Earlier this month (May 8), The Weeknd revealed he would be working on his final album under his stage name in this month's W Magazine cover story, hinting he was thinking of releasing music under a new moniker.

The Weeknd appears to be getting ready to move on. The musician and now actor has changed his name on social media to Abel Tesfaye, the name he was born with. He’s still retained his social media handles.Jenna Ortega and The Weeknd set to star in new film: Here’s everything we knowLily-Rose Depp reveals relationship with rapper Danielle BalbuenaA post shared by Abel Tesfaye (@theweeknd)Tesfaye hasn’t revealed why he’s made the change, but he’s been speaking to the press about his upcoming series, “The Idol,” which he co-created and co-stars.

A certain pop-star might be making rebranding himself. The Weeknd made a noticeable change on his social media which is causing fans to ask: Is The Weeknd retiring? 

Zack Sharf Digital News Director Filming HBO’s “The Idol” led to something of a breakdown for Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, the global pop star whose starring in the upcoming series as a self-help guru named Tedros who takes aspiring pop star Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp) under his wing. Back in September, Tesfaye cut short a concert in Los Angeles because he lost his voice. “I don’t know what just happened… but I just lost my voice,” the singer told the crowd from the stage. “This is killing me, I don’t want to stop the show but I can’t give you the concert I want to give you right now. I’m gonna make sure everybody’s good — you’ll get your money back — I’ll do a show real soon for you guys. But I wanted to come out and personally apologize.”

HBO series The Idol has revealed how The Weeknd – real name Abel Tesfaye – first pitched the idea of the show to him.Speaking to W Magazine, Levinson recalled: “Abel came to us with a pitch. He said something that I’ll always remember: ‘If I wanted to start a cult, I could.’ What he meant is that his fans were so loyal and devoted that they would follow him anywhere.

Charna Flam Ahead of the Cannes Film Festival debut and summer premiere of Sam Levinson’s upcoming drama series “The Idol,” the director offered some insight on how the HBO production was conceived. The “Euphoria” showrunner explained how the series lead, Abel Tesfaye, also known as The Weeknd, pitched the premise. “Abel came to us with a pitch,” Levinson told W Magazine. “He said something that I’ll always remember: ‘If I wanted to start a cult, I could.’” “What he meant is that his fans were so loyal and devoted that they would follow him anywhere,” Levinson continued. “That was the germ of the idea for ‘The Idol’: what happens when a pop star falls for the wrong guy and no one speaks up.”

The Weeknd is bidding to purchase NHL team the Ottawa Senators, according to the Ottawa Sun and Star. It is reported that Abel Tesfaye is part of a group, alongside Jeffrey and Michael Kimel of the Harlo Capital Group, seeking to gain a controlling stake in the company.

The Weeknd has recently said that he wants to get rid of his alter-ego, saying that he ” wants to kill The Weeknd.”In a recent interview with W Magazine alongside his The Idol co-star Lily-Rose Depp, The Weeknd made it known that he wants to continue with his creative endeavours, only under his real name, Abel Tesfaye.The Canadian singer told the interviewer that he’s on “a cathartic path right now” and is “getting to a place and a time where [he’s] getting ready to close The Weeknd chapter”.While he might be moving to switch between his moniker and his real name, he’ll eventually “try to shed that skin and be reborn.”Lily-Rose Depp and The Weeknd cover the latest issue of W Magazine pic.twitter.com/r2OayOVI7L— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) May 8, 2023Speaking about his new music, he said: “The album I’m working on now is probably my last hurrah as the Weeknd. This is something that I have to do.