“The Idol” has undergone a variety of adjustments since Variety reported about its inventive overhaul on April 25, 2022. Per the outlet, unique director Amy Seimetz exited the present amid inventive variations. Days following the information, Deadline famous that actor Suzanna Son wouldn’t return to the six-episode mission both. HBO didn’t touch upon which different solid and crew members left the manufacturing. However, the community did tackle the brand new changes in a press release.
“‘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,” an HBO spokesperson mentioned, per Deadline. “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.”
Soon after these adjustments, Levinson was introduced in. He serves as cocreator alongside The Weeknd and Reza Fahim; The trio are additionally govt producers along with Kevin Turen, Ashley Levinson, Aaron Gilbert for BRON, and Sara E. White. Levinson directs and writes with The Weeknd and Fahim.
Rolling Stone’s Investigation Into “The Idol”
According to Rolling Stone , Levinson scrapped Seimetz’s practically completed model of the present — which had value between $54 million and $75 million — and launched into an entire rewrite and reshoot. Per the outlet’s interviews with manufacturing members, the present turned far more disturbing and violent underneath Levinson’s path. “It was a show about a woman who was finding herself sexually, turned into a show about a man who gets to abuse this woman and she loves it,” a supply mentioned of the brand new cocreator’s adjustments. Insiders additionally claimed that Levinson’s scripts contained a variety of bodily and sexually violent scenes between Depp’s and The Weeknd’s characters, which one crew member described as “sexual torture porn.” Apparently, a few of the most violent scenes have been by no means filmed.
Production members additionally advised Rolling Stone that many solid members have been let go and lots of crew members didn’t return for Levinson’s remake, describing the shift as “very scarring.” While Levinson did deliver on many new stars, together with Kim, a crew member mentioned the Blackpink member’s position is “like three or four lines per episode” and claimed, “Her job was to sit there [and] look pretty, basically.”
Meanwhile, whereas Seimetz’s manufacturing had been reportedly hectic, underneath Levinson’s path, “There was always this sense of chaos because [we] never had a plan on what was going to happen today, or tomorrow, or the next scene,” a crew member mentioned.
According to Deadline, a few of the adjustments have been initiated by The Weeknd, who reportedly was not proud of the state of the present underneath Seimetz. Sources mentioned he felt the present was leaning an excessive amount of right into a “female perspective” with costar Depp’s character relatively than his personal. (Reps for The Weeknd didn’t reply to POPSUGAR’s request for touch upon the report.)
Elsewhere, a manufacturing member advised Rolling Stone that The Weeknd “wanted one show that was all about him” and “Sam was on board with that,” although sources additionally advised the outlet that the singer’s tight schedule had made it tough to function him on the heart of the present’s narrative whereas Seimetz was spearheading the mission.
In a press release supplied to POPSUGAR, Depp defended Levinson, calling him “the best director” she had labored with and mentioned she’d by no means “felt more supported or respected in a creative space, my input, and opinions more valued.” A rep for HBO advised POPSUGAR that “the creative team has been committed to creating a safe, collaborative, and mutually respectful working environment, and last year, the team made creative changes they felt were in the best interest of both the production and the cast and crew.”
HBO’s rep additionally famous {that a} TMZ report — which claims that HBO and The Weeknd are proud of Levinson’s management, and which additionally denies that The Weeknd criticized the present’s concentrate on a “female perspective” — presents an “accurate” portrayal of what is actually occurring behind the scenes. Meanwhile, shortly after the Rolling Stone article was revealed, The Weeknd shared a clip of himself and Depp (in character) making enjoyable of Rolling Stone on Instagram, together with the caption, “@rollingstone, did we upset you?”
Reps for Levinson didn’t reply to POPSUGAR’s request for touch upon the Rolling Stone report.
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