The Idol has been officially terminated after much discussion regarding its future.
The HBO series, created by Euphoria’s Sam Levinson and starring Abel ‘The Weeknd’ Tesfaye and Lily-Rose Depp, was one of the most anticipated shows of the year, but it was also clouded in controversy, being slammed by both critics and fans alike for its explicit content, with some even going so far as to call it ‘torture porn’.
It also finished an episode earlier than expected, raising the issue of whether the series will have an encore.
It has now been revealed that the programme would be terminated after only one season.
‘The Idol was one of HBO’s most provocative original programs, and we’re pleased by the strong audience response,’ an HBO spokesperson said.
‘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,’ they added in the statement to EW.
While there had been continuous discussions regarding a possible second season, it has been stated that there were ideas for multi-season arcs, but no decisions were finalised until lately.
According to HBO, The Idol was one of Max’s best summer shows, with over seven million viewers tuning in for the debut.
The Idol, which premiered in June, following troubled pop singer Jocelyn (Depp) and her difficult connection with cult leader Tedros (Tesfaye).
An investigation in Rolling Stone documented charges that the production had devolved into a’s*** show’ before it ever aired.
Trouble first began when director Amy Seimetz exited the show after several of the six episodes had already been completed, and reports detailed how when Levinson took over as director, he ‘scrapped the nearly-finished $54-75 million project to rewrite and reshoot the entire thing’.
Da’Vine Joy Randolph, who portrayed Jocelyn’s manager Destiny, previously stated in an interview that the network was so satisfied with the series that talks regarding a second season had taken place.
‘I think that everyone’s intention is to have a second season,’ she told Variety.
‘This was never intended to be a limited series. HBO has been very happy with it — so much so that there were rumours that we were cancelled, and then HBO went on Twitter [to dispute the rumours], which I think they rarely do. Nothing is official, but HBO is quite happy.’
When asked about Randolph’s comments, an HBO spokesperson told EW the network had ‘nothing to add’.
The Idol is streaming on NOW and .
