The Idol Is But a Pale Shadow Of What It Actually Could Have Been

The Idol has been expected for a long time. Rumors that the creators of the show would pull back the veils and reveal the underside of show business have fueled public interest: who does not want to take a peek behind the scenes?

The project was supposed to be directed by Amy Seimetz, the creator of The Girlfriend's Experience, a series that reflected the sexual exploitation and objectification of women.

Therefore, there was no doubt that The Idol would successfully tear the veils off the male chauvinist world of show business.

But things soon went wrong. Producer Sam Levinson, after reviewing the material, pushed Seimetz aside and took over directing duties.

His show Euphoria was an undeniable hit, so The Idol was given a huge vote of confidence in advance, and two pilot episodes were included in the out-of-competition program at the Cannes Film Festival.

The director did not disappoint his audience: after the show, The Idol received a five-minute standing ovation. However, a real critical debacle followed.

The anger of the critics, however, was understandable. Levinson fooled everyone.

Instead of showing the dirty underbelly of show business and telling the story, as promised, of how a pop star finds herself in the battle against the male world of sexual exploiters and makes her own way in the industry, the director shows the behind-the-scenes of pop music in the style of the 1990s – bright and erotic, full of sexual tension, and dirty secrets.

The series literally became the very thing that it promised to be fighting against.

However, it's hard to argue that Lily-Rose proved once again that she is not just the daughter of a famous actor, but an entity in her own right.

The recently released second episode further reassured fans that Lily was working with what she had and that she was working one hundred percent.

The scene with a psychological breakdown, where Jocelyn calls her dead mother, could not help but touch the viewers, even with all the skepticism about the series as a whole.

However, the positive emotions caused by Depp's performance are immediately wiped out by the next appearance of Tedros.

Intimate scenes that were supposed to make the audience's blood boil only caused a desire to quickly rewind the incredibly awkward and cringeworthy dirty talk.

Tedros was so completely stone-faced, as if he was not trying to push Jocelyn beyond the limits, but was waiting for the pizza to heat up in the microwave. No wonder the infamous scene has already become a meme.

In two episodes, it has become clear that the original ideas are rarely seen due to the changes made by Levinson and The Weeknd – and this is the best thing about the show.

Everything else looks like a parade of narcissism that no one could stop in time.