The Weeknd and Euphoria Creator Sam Levinson’s HBO Show Going Through Major Changes

The Idol, the highly-anticipated HBO series from The Weeknd and Euphoria creator Sam Levinson, is in the midst of some creative flux. Find out the latest details here.

By Daniel Trainor Apr 25, 2022 9:29 PMTags
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The lights might not be so blinding after all.

In an eyebrow-raising turn of events, HBO has announced that The Idol, from creators The Weeknd (a.k.a. Abel Tesfaye), Euphoria's Sam Levinson and Reza Fahim, would be undergoing some changes. 

"The Idol's creative team continues to build, refine, and evolve their vision for the show and they have aligned on a new creative direction," the network said in a statement to E! News. "The production will be adjusting its cast and crew accordingly to best serve this new approach to the series. We look forward to sharing more information soon."

There is no immediate word on what exactly these changes are, or who they might affect. Production had already been completed on multiple episodes, which will now be redone, according to Variety

The Idol was set to follow a club owner and cult leader (Tesfaye) who begins a relationship with a rising pop star, played by Lily-Rose Depp in her first lead television role. The ensemble cast also features Red Rocket star Suzanna SonTroye Sivan and All-American Rejects frontman Tyson Ritter.

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Tesfaye, who just stepped in for Kanye West as a headliner at Coachella, was also on board to co-write and executive produce the series with Levinson and Fahim. 

Levinson is best known for creating and writing HBO's Euphoria, which wrapped its second season in February. Rahim is a nightlife entrepreneur who often collaborates with Tesfaye on creative projects. 

Leon Bennett/WireImage, Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

The show had put together a strong group behind the scenes. Mary Laws, who has previously written for Succession and co-wrote the 2016 film The Neon Demon, was on board to write and co-executive produce. Amy Seimetz, whose TV credits include Atlanta and Outer Range, was scheduled to direct all six episodes of The Idol

For any and all updates regarding this series, be sure to circle back here.

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