The Idol is one and done at HBO.
The controversial series from Euphoria creator Sam Levinson and Abel Tesfaye, better known as The Weeknd, will not be returning for a second season.
It’s not a huge surprise given the critical and commercial reception of the show, which starred Tesfaye and Lily-Rose Depp. It also came after extensive reshoots following the departure of director Amy Seimetz, as revealed by Deadline in April 2022, and a reduced order taking its total number of episodes to five.
Some of the cast did mention the possibility of a second season during interviews, though show insiders said that creators did not come into the production process with a plan for a multi-season arc.
Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who played one of the managers of Depp’s pop star Jocelyn, previously said that the first season was left intentionally open-ended for the possibility of a second.
“The Idol was one of HBO’s most provocative original programs, and we’re pleased by the strong audience response,” said an HBO spokeswoman. “After much thought and consideration, HBO, as well as the creators and producers, have decided not to move forward with a second season. We’re grateful to the creators, cast, and crew for their incredible work.”
(article continues with some viewing figures, etc)
My opinion on this show is entirely out-sourced (I never watched it), so my snarky title might not be warrented
Interesting.
Not going to lie, I do want HBO to unironically release the original version of the first season. I heard that it was basically almost done before The Weeknd came in and made it all weird.
Rolling Stone estimated that it was 80% done before Amy Seimetz left, which is still a awful lot to just throw away. I’m not sure I’d want to watch the original version, but I’d happily watch a documentary about what went wrong.
I saw the weekend was in it and was instantly out. Knew I’d have absolutely no interest.