When the showrunner becomes the subject of its content, in my opinion, it deviates a lot from the proposal of taking us on a trip to another universe and getting involved with the characters. It was like this with True Detective, where you heard more about Nic Pizzolatto behind the scenes wanting things his way than having a plot that made sense, and it seems to me that it is being like this with the recently released The Idol, by Sam Levinson, the author of the award-winning Euphoria. The negative reviews about the first few episodes screened at Cannes, director Amy Seimetz leaving before work was finished, and reports of ‘ultra-graphic’ sex scenes generated more curiosity than the story of the pressure of fame on star Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp). It is a trap! However, let’s analyze what was presented.

In the only episode released on the Max platform (formerly HBO), we are introduced to a kind of post-crisis Britney Spears: Jocelyn is the biggest pop star of the moment, she had a nervous breakdown after something that happened to her mother (died she die? if so, how? did they fight?) and is rehearsing a comeback, but is surrounded by a team that ‘protects’ her from the truths, who never say ‘no’ to anything she does or asks and thus isolates her from reality and connection with people. Jocelyn is a sexual and fragile person, she seeks to fill her existential void with drugs, drinks, and parties. On one of her ‘getaways’ into the Los Angeles night, she falls into the lap of a nightclub owner, Tedros (Weeknd), who immediately establishes an influence on her – creative, sexual, and loving – being a dark and clearly opportunistic figure. By the teaser of what comes next, he will take charge of Jocelyn’s life and career, while at the same time exposing her to a world even more dangerous than she could have anticipated.

The plot proposal is nothing innovative and if we take fiction into consideration, the universe of music is dangerous and full of parasites, ready to destroy the souls of sensitive artists. The list that retells this story is long, whether with humor (Be Cool is a gem) or drama (The Rose, A Star Is Born, Daisy Jones and the Six, etc), so The Idol easily falls into a network of clichés about Hollywood, while still being honest.

Lily-Rose Depp is great, I didn’t find the grim figure of the Weeknd too problematic and the soundtrack obviously doesn’t disappoint. The ‘problem’ of the series lies in the intention of being ‘disruptive’ as a narrative engine, forgetting to connect with people and therefore, at least with the female audience, it ends up being sexist and empty. It reminded me of Blonde‘s main mistake which by ‘criticizing’ an idol’s exploitation, exploits her even more. Ana de Armas was perfect as Marilyn Monroe, but in constant mental crisis, alternating sex scenes and tears in seconds, as required. Lily-Rose experiences the same challenge as Jocelyn: she is mentally fragile, cries, smokes, and has sex like oxygen. There isn’t a frame in which she isn’t languid or practically naked. The scene in which the intimacy consultant, who tries to protect her from all this and is literally locked in a bathroom, is aggressive, too on your nose, and most of all, retrograde. I understand that for macho directors a person drawing a limit can be annoying, but it was proven extremely relevant precisely after the whole sequence.

Gratuitous sexual and female exploitation is harmful and regretfully is one of The Idol‘s main weapons. It will not be reduced by anything until the end of the season. It’s odd that toxic males still insist on normalizing exploitation, branding critics prudes. And unfortunately, talented stars submit to it. But whatever. My disappointment is for realizing that Hollywood still didn’t budge on this issue and now I see even Euphoria with different eyes too.

The other aggressive message was the clearly forced phrase that “mental health is sexy”, to develop the power of exploitation over Jocelyn’s fragility. Apart from the danger of assertion, if the story is to alert the problem of the vulnerability of stars as the spring of fame, it missed the mark. Yes, it is an interesting thesis to think that it is the idol’s instability that makes him more human for the fans, who see in this a chance to get closer, but it is also oversimplifying what the entertainment universe does to the souls of more sensitive people. As it was only a single episode, it’s too early to expect the worst. On the other hand, dialogue is as forced and manipulative as this takes away from the charm that the audience can figure out for themselves.

In summary, The Idol is not as bad as they say, but it has not shown the potential to be as daring as advertised. It’s a sort of Blonde about Britney Spears rather than Marilyn Monroe, a tale about a macho, oppressive universe exploring a woman’s soul in crisis. We’ve seen this a thousand times before.

Having said all that, stray thoughts:

• What a beautiful Weeknd‘s real house is! That’s right, the filming of Jocelyn’s house was done in the musician’s real home. What good taste!
• Anys’ (Jenny Kim) relationship with Jocelyn and with Tedros is massive suspicious. She is part of the scheme. She is the one who suggests to Joss that they go to a nightclub that she hasn’t been to and as soon as Tedros enters, he starts acting to get closer to the star. Equally, everyone is aware of Leia’s (Rachel Sennott) efforts to protect her friend/boss, so the appearance of Izaak (Moses Sumney) to stop her was also ultra suspicious.
• What is clear is that there was no chance to facilitate Tedros’ access to Jocelyn, it’s a well-thought-out plan. What does he want besides her money and fame? We’ll see. This echoes a bit of criticism from women in the production that the story became one of an abuser and a complacent victim in a toxic and dangerous relationship.
• The opening scene, as we are told in the featurette about the episode, is important for thinking about Jocelyn. In fractions of seconds and under command she manages to deliver several reactions that go from laughter to tears, she is a born actress, which others still don’t realize. They see her alterations as evidence of her mental imbalance and not her decision to do what she wants, how she wants, and when she wants. In other words, Jocelyn might not be as much of a victim as we’re seeing. (Nothing more sexist and old-fashioned than this narrative, but ok)
• Again, what happened to Jocelyn’s mother? It is a subject that everyone avoids delving into, but it is the catalyst for the star’s problems. I bet we’ll know more about it.

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