For years now, HBO has dominated Sunday nights. Even in the era of streaming and “peak TV,” the premium network has designated the evening for appointment television viewing, offering up new episodes of its most prestigious and talked about series.
Just think of the last few months: Starting in the fall, we spent our Sundays at The White Lotus: Sicily, followed by (after a brief holiday break) The Last Of Us, which was immediately succeeded by the bravura final season of Succession.
And now we have The Idol, a dark drama from Euphoria creator Sam Levinson and Abel Tesfaye, a.k.a. The Weeknd, starring Tesfaye himself as a cult-like self-help guru alongside Lily Rose Depp as an aspiring pop star trying to get her career back on track.
While The Idol has generated just as much conversation as the HBO dramas that came before it, it’s for all the wrong reasons. Since debuting at the Cannes Film Festival last month, the series has garnered harsh reviews from critics—and now that the rest of us have had the opportunity to tune in, it hasn’t fared much better.
Many HBO loyalists are already commenting on the shop drop in quality for their Sunday night viewing:
Oof.
Look, it brings us no pleasure to see The Idol flop like this! Regardless of your thoughts on Euphoria, that show became an immediate cultural phenomenon so we had hopes Levinson’s splashy follow-up would be worth tuning into week after week.
Plus, the ensemble is filled with folks we’re kind of obsessed with: Queer icons Troye Sivan, Hari Nef, and Dan Levy—not to mention comedic scene stealer Rachel Sennott, Blackpink K-pop star Jennie, and some great character actors like Jane Adams and Da’Vine Joy Randolph.
But their combined talents couldn’t save The Idol from itself. Dubbed “florid and sleazy” by Rotten Tomatoes, the drama actually holds a significant distinction for HBO: It’s the network’s lowest rated series. Ever.
Even after all the negative buzz, curiosity got the better of us and we couldn’t help but tune in. Here’s what a few viewers had to say:
And it seems to be The Weeknd who’s getting the harshest review of the show. A Variety headline shared after the premiere rather bluntly asks: “Why Are the Weeknd’s Acting Skills Nonexistent?”
Twitter’s no letting him off the hook either:
Interestingly, the part of the show anyone seems to be enjoying is the original song The Weeknd made with Madonna for its soundtrack, which we reported last week is already being hailed as a certified summer bop.
Maybe Tesfaye should’ve just stuck with music?
Despite the pans, we’re going to find it hard to resist tuning in week after week—if for no other reason than to see more of gorgeous musician-turned-actor Moses Sumney walking around poolside in short shorts.
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The show is horrendous, like a straight cis male fantasy train that barreled far off the track. Why did HBO, now MAX, greenlight this show? Narrative cliches, tired references, bad accents (is Hank Azaria really trying to sound like an Israeli and if so, can someone get him a coach, pronto?) Lily-Rose Depp comes off like a parody of a pop star but she’s at least somewhat believable (though do we really need to see her masturbating while choking herself?), but the Weeknd should have stuck to the music. Also, if the women are going to be nude in 2023, make things equal and have the men strip as well. Everything about this show seems off, though. And there’s not enough Dan Levy or Moses Sumney (even with the absurd bleached coif) to make this thing watchable. No thanks.