Before The Idol's Jocelyn, there was Britney Spears.
And for Lily-Rose Depp, the star of Max's upcoming controversial series, the "...Baby One More Time" singer was never far from her mind as she helped develop her character.
"There was so much inspiration to be drawn, from somebody like Britney Spears, who I adore," the actress exclusively told E! News, adding, "and all of the other incredible pop icons of our time."
In The Idol, Lily-Rose plays Jocelyn, a pop star attempting a career comeback following a mental health crisis. Along the way, she gets intimately involved with a nightclub mogul and cult leader, played by co-creator Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye.
When it comes to working with the real-life pop star, Lily-Rose is singing his praises. "He's a really generous scene partner," the 24-year-old explained to E! News. "He's really present and he's really supportive and he is a really good friend to me."
She continued, "When you're going to these kind of like really vulnerable, emotional places with somebody, in the scenes the hope is that you'll have that kind of trust and safety with them and I really feel I had that with Abel."
While the series co-creator and director Sam Levinson confirmed Britney is name-dropped in the pilot at a press conference for the show during its world premiere at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival last month, he also addressed comparisons between Jocelyn and the "Toxic" singer, whose personal turmoil has largely played out in the public eye.
"We're not we're not trying to tell you a story about any particular pop star," he said. "I think we're just we're looking more at how the world perceives a pop star and the pressure that it puts on that individual."
The Euphoria creator continued, "It's a lot of pressure to constantly have to be 'on' and to have to be what everyone wishes you to be, and I think that it's a lonely life. We can all pretend that everyone is just looking out for someone's best interests, but I think fame really corrupts."
In the months ahead of its debut, The Idol has already stirred controversy over its explicit scenes and portrayal of female sexuality., has already stirred controversy over its explicit scenes and portrayal of female sexuality.
However, both the cast and crew have pushed back on the criticism. "I think we live in a very sexualized world," Sam said at the Cannes press conference. "I think the influence of pornography is really strong in terms of the psyche of young people in in the States and we see this in in pop music...how it reflects the kind of the underbelly of the internet in some ways."
The Idol is set to premiere on Max on June 4.