Our long national nightmare is finally over.
After five episodes, an avalanche of criticism, and countless tweets wondering “What the hell am I watching?,” Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye’s HBO drama, The Idol, is ending. Though the series was originally supposed to be six episodes long, this Sunday’s fifth episode, “Jocelyn Forever” is being called the season finale. Sources are saying that it was always supposed to be five episodes, according to TV Line. That may be true, but it’s hard not to think that the relentless scrutiny the series was under didn’t play a role in its early exit.
The Idol stars Lily-Rose Depp as embattled pop star Jocelyn, who finds herself wrapped up in a cult with mysterious club owner Tedros, played by Tesfaye. On the surface, that sounds like a somewhat interesting premise, but the series has totally failed in its execution of anything remotely resembling an entertaining TV show. The dialogue is jaw-droppingly bad, while nothing in the story seems to make any kind of sense.
Honestly, this is probably one of those shows that never should have been made in the first place. It had a weird, uncomfortable vibe around it right from the start. Once it underwent multiple creative changes, with cast and crew exiting the project and Sam Levinson (Euphoria) taking over as director, that should’ve signaled to everyone involved that this project was dead in the water.
Then, before its premiere, stories began to circulate about the explicit, bordering on exploitative, sexual aspects of Depp’s character. Once the series actually hit the air, the reaction didn’t get much better, as reviews ranged from loathing it, to straight-up ignoring it. It currently stands at 24 percent on Rotten Tomatoes. After the second episode featured a particularly cringey scene, where Tedros directs Jocelyn through a series of sexual poses and situations, viewers seemed completely done with this nonsense. While Tesfaye says they were trying to make the viewer feel uncomfortable, it just came off as gratuitous and gross.
The Weeknd is one of the most uniquely creative artists in the industry. He probably already has 10 wildly different projects lined up and is ready for the next challenge. I hope he learns from this experience and realizes that it’s great to push the envelope, but he also has to learn that those shocking, jaw-dropping moments have to be earned. And when the audience is telling you something is deeply uncomfortable and has crossed a line they won’t follow you over, it’s OK to listen to them. He also needs to know that as an artist your credibility will only buy you one, maybe two, of these high-profile failures. We encourage our favorites to take risks, but be smart about it.