The Weeknd Says He 'Very Much' Expected Criticism of 'The Idol'

The Idol, the HBO series from The Weeknd and Euphoria's Sam Levinson, brought its first season to an end last week. I thought it was quite bad, but found the internet pile-on was exaggerated, as they usually are.

“worst sex scenes in history.”“Continue to push the vision no matter how bumpy the journey,” Tesfaye, 33, told his fans in an Instagram post, seemingly referring to the show’s poor reception. Upon premiering at Cannes, “The Idol,” which Tesfaye created with Sam Levinson of “Euphoria” fame, was widely derided for its nudity, sex and directionless plot. “‘The Idol,’ or 50 SHADES OF TESFAYE: A Pornhub-homepage odyssey starring Lily-Rose Depp’s areolas and The Weeknd’s greasy rat tail,” a critic for the Gray Lady sneered after a viewing.“The show heavily exploits Lily … I hope she’s okay with it all because it comes off very exploitative,” another critic worried. The plot followed troubled pop princess Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp, 24, daughter of Johnny Depp) as she became involved in a weird and sex-filled relationship with self-help guru, club owner and cult leader Tedros (Tesfaye). The show regularly scandalized audiences, who cringed at its “nasty” sex scenes.Levinson doubled down after “The Idol” was criticized, defending his work as “revolutionary,” while others noted that the show is actually a lot tamer than earlier efforts, such as “True Blood.” “I think we live in a very sexualized world,” Levinson said.Depp also defended the show, telling Vogue Australia, “We know that we’re making something provocative and we are not shying away from that. That’s something I knew I was setting out to do from the beginning.

Is The Idol just a sick, twisted ex-girlfriend revenge fantasy for one of its stars?!

Note: This story contains spoilers from the “The Idol” episode 5.HBO’s “The Idol” wrapped up its five-episode season Sunday night with a surprise ending — that was evidently spoiled to The Weeknd fans who attended his Los Angeles concert this fall.On the finale: As the twisted relationship between rebounding pop star Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp) and shady nightclub owner Tedros (Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye) sunk even deeper into dangerous territory as Tedros attempts to control every part of Jocelyn’s life and career, Jocelyn decides to get rid of Tedros once and for all by bringing her manager Chaim into the mix. When Tedros refuses to take a check for half a million dollars to stay away from Jocelyn, Chaim moves to Plan B — tipping off a Vanity Fair journalist to write a scathing exposé of Tedros’ past exploits that would ruin him forever.Weeks later, in an unexpected turn of events, Tedros shows up at Jocelyn’s concert at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, and the pop star takes him back.

Elizabeth Wagmeister Chief Correspondent On “The Idol,” Da’Vine Joy Randolph brings a rare bit of heart to the much-discussed show. Playing Destiny, Jocelyn’s (Lily-Rose Depp) manager, the actor portrays one of the only stabilizing forces surrounding the sexualized pop star who has been wrapped up in a dangerous world, led by wannabe musician and cult leader Tedros (Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye). Randolph was hand-picked by “Idol” co-creator Sam Levinson after the “Euphoria” creator took over the show during a complete overhaul in which he shot it again, after an initial version helmed by Amy Seimetz was completely scrapped, Randolph says. Controversy began before the show even premiered, with a Rolling Stone article that claimed production on “The Idol” had gone “disgustingly off the rails” and that Levinson’s version played like “twisted torture porn.”

Abel «The Weeknd» Tesfaye said this week he «very much» expected a negative reaction to Controversy surrounding the show and its production first surfaced several months before the first episode's premiere, when sources told  that the project had gone «wildly, disgustingly off the rails.» Most recently, referred to the third episode as «bizarrely edited» and «hackily written.» Tesfaye said he expected all of this criticism, but was not fazed by it. «It's almost educational, that this is what comes with being incredibly famous,» Tesfaye told of his show's treatment of fame. «You're surrounded by people who you're not sure what their true intentions are, even if it seems like they're good.

William Earl After the third episode of “The Idol,” series co-creator Sam Levinson described how he developed the creepy, awkward and ambitious cult leader Tedros played by Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye. “We’re in Abel’s house, we’re talking it through, imagining the character Tedros,” Levinson said, in the series’ “Crafting the Family” featurette on Max. “And I would say, ‘Imagine you have all of the dreams that you have of what you want to do in life, in terms of music, and your career, all of the aspirations — but imagine you have none of the talent. That’s who this character is.'” Tesfaye described the character similarly in a recent interview.

Ever since “The Idol” premiered earlier this month, there’s been much critique about its sexual material, including a scene in the premiere episode where pop star Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp) decides to flash her nipples during a photoshoot, despite the nudity rider in her contract.

Sam Levinson‘s latest series “The Idol” hit HBO two weekends ago after its world premiere at Cannes in May, and the critical response is …not good. In fact, most critics think it’s a trainwreck of a show, which isn’t surprising given the stories that leaked during its production.

Well, fans of The Idol, it’s looking like this is going to be your only season.

The Weeknd is responding to the backlash surrounding that graphic sex scene on his controversial new show “The Idol”.

The Weeknd, real name Abel Tesfaye, is facing backlash from the internet due to his role in a highly explicit sex scene in new HBO series The Idol.The singer plays a cult-like club owner who preys on a vulnerable pop icon struggling to create new music after the death of her mother.The controversial scene that has rubbed viewers up the wrong way shows The Weeknd's character, Tedros, firing off sexually graphic commands to Jocelyn, played by Lily Rose Depp, as she strips on her bed.The show, which has been described as a “rape fantasy,” has been facing criticism since it aired, with many people believing that this particular scene was in poor taste and crossed boundaries. One Twitter user claimed that she would “never see The Weeknd the same after this.” Another user wrote: “It sounds better when he is singing these lines.

The Weeknd is addressing that very awkward sex scene from episode two of The Idol.

The Weeknd is addressing his highly talked about moments in The Idol, and apparently they’re all part of the plan…

Ethan Shanfeld SPOILER ALERT: This story contains minor spoilers from the second episode of HBO’s “The Idol,” titled “Double Fantasy,” now streaming on Max. If that sex scene at the end of Episode 2 of HBO’s “The Idol” made you uncomfortable, then Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye accomplished his goal. Tesfaye, who co-created “The Idol” with “Euphoria’s” Sam Levinson, spoke with GQ after the scene, which features his character Tedros verbally seducing pop star Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp), sparked controversy online. “There’s nothing sexy about it,” Tesfaye told GQ. “However you’re feeling watching that scene, whether it’s discomfort, or you feel gross, or you feel embarrassed for the characters. It’s all those emotions adding up to: this guy is in way over his head, this situation is one where he is not supposed to be here.”

Save your criticism for another day. The Weeknd has claimed that his “nasty” sex scene with Lily-Rose Depp in the second episode of HBO’s “The Idol” is more pathetic than sensual. “There’s nothing sexy about it,” the “Blinding Lights” megastar, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, told GQ in an interview published Tuesday.

Hank Azaria is defending his new HBO drama, , following controversy over the show's nude scenes.Appearing on the third hour of the  show Tuesday, Azaria said «every care was taken,» a sentiment the show's star, Lily-Rose Depp has echoed in her defense of the series.«I was mercifully left out of the nude shenanigans personally, but I can tell you that I know Lily-Rose [Depp], who was the center of all that mainly, has said publicly and privately how protected and taken care of and collaborated with and listened to and safe she felt,» Azaria said. «I know every care was taken, not just with those kind of scenes, but there are many kinds of sensitive scenes in this show, and I certainly felt safe that way and collaborated with.» stars Depp as Jocelyn, an up-and-coming pop singer who is pressured and influenced by Tedros (The Weeknd), a charismatic cult leader/self-help guru who promises Jocelyn everything and will stop at nothing to make her famous.Azaria also referenced a  expose which claimed that production of the series had «gone wildly, disgustingly off the rails,» calling the outlet's report «ridiculous.»«It seemed to be in that piece connected to what they called the 'chaotic nature of the set,' and how it was really haphazard, and that I can tell you is ridiculous… I understand how certain people could feel that way.

creepin‘” out several viewers during the already controversial show’s second episode on Sunday.Fans of musician The Weeknd — born Abel Makkonen Tesfaye — claimed they will never be able to look at the superstar again after a “nasty” sex scene featuring the pop singer aired on the new HBO drama.The eye-popping scene saw the singer, who plays club owner and cult leader Tedros, and Jocelyn (played by Lily-Rose Depp) getting intimate with each other — in a way that rubbed viewers wrong.One Twitter user, who recorded and posted the scene online, claimed that she would “never see The Weeknd the same after this.” At one point during the steamy scene, a deadpanned Tesfaye, 33, says that he wants to “f–kin stretch that tiny, little p—y” while 24-year-old Depp’s character pleasures herself. Several other social media users also agreed with the sentiment.

The Idol debuted earlier this month, and, in a meta moment, its fictional pop star main character is quickly eclipsed by a real-life pop star. Enter Blackpink’s Jennie Kim, who is credited under her stage name Jennie Ruby Jane in the show.Ever since the 27-year-old announced her acting debut would be in The Idol, one of the most  of recent memory, BLINKs have been holding their collective breath in anticipation.

Saturday Night Live’s Chloe Fineman is adding a new impersonation into her repertoire: Jocelyn from The Idol!