The Weeknd Trends After His Recent Vulgar Appearance In ‘The Idol’ HBO Series
The Weeknd is trending following his recent performance on “The Idol,” a series that the “Starboy” singer and “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson co-created.
The 33-year-old singer, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, plays a character named “Tedros” in the HBO series. “Tedros” is portrayed as a dubious club owner.
Tesfaye’s character is involved in a sex scene with “Jocelyn,” a struggling pop star portrayed by Lily-Rose Depp, daughter of Johnny Depp, in the second episode that recently aired.
In the explicit sexual sequence, Tesfaye is observed speaking in a vulgar manner to Depp’s character. At one point in the show, the singer’s character told the pop star, “F**kin’ stretch that tiny little p***y,” to which the pop star responds by inserting her fingers into her mouth.
After the episode went viral, Tesfaye has since spoken with GQ about the controversy received. He speaks about his character, the viral episode and why he is defending “Tedros’” actions. He said, “There’s nothing sexy about it. However you’re feeling watching that scene, whether it’s discomfort, or you feel gross, or you feel embarrassed for the characters. It’s all those emotions adding up to: this guy is in way over his head, this situation is one where he is not supposed to be here.”
Tesfaye goes on to say that the explosive sex scene is meant to be portrayed in such a heavy and “gluttonous” manner because “Tedros,” this mysterious club mogul, truly “can’t believe he’s there” in that moment with the pop star.
Tesfaye adds, “You look at him, and this is a score — Jocelyn might be the biggest score he’s ever had. It’s very obvious. He’s over-indulging, he walks into this house looking around like, ‘Goddamn, am I way over my head? This can be the biggest job I’ve ever done.’”
Despite defending the graphic sex scene and his character’s wild commentary, Tesfaye also sees where people on the internet are coming from and agrees that his character “comes off like such a loser.” He adds, “He’s despicable, a psychopath — why sugarcoat it? There’s nothing really mysterious or hypnotizing about him. And we did that on purpose with his look, his outfits, his hair — the guy’s a douchebag.”
Meanwhile, it was reported that after the second episode of the show, it dropped in viewership by over 100,000 people. Prior to that, the premiere, on June 4, brought in 913,000 viewers, before being chastised by fans for being “comically bad.”
The show airs on Max on Sundays at 9pm.
