HBO Cutting Episode Count Cost The Idol a Chance to Get an Emmy
Not that many expected the show to be nominated at all.
The Idol continues to baffle audiences not only with its explicit content, but also with all the media buzz and controversial behind-the-scenes details surrounding the project.
Recently, viewers were taken aback by the announcement that the series will end after Episode 5, set for release this coming Sunday, July 2, although the first season was previously expected to have five episodes.
As it turns out, the episode count was reduced by The Idol's creator Sam Levinson last year after he replaced Amy Seimetz as the director and overhauled pretty much all of the scenes and characters in the show. However, The Idol's producers somehow failed to let the public know about the first season being cut to five episodes, so fans of the show were completely shocked when HBO announced the news on Monday, June 26.
While those people who hate-watched The Idol feel relieved knowing that there is now only one episode to finish off the series, many fans are disappointed with Levinson's decision to cut the season short — and it's not just because they wanted to see more of Jocelyn and Tedros' story. Apparently, now that the season has only five episodes, The Idol cannot be nominated for the Primetime Emmy Awards, as this would contradict the Academy's rules.
'COMEDY AND DRAMA SERIES are defined as programs with multiple episodes (minimum of six), where the majority of the running time of at least six episodes are primarily comedic for comedy series entries, or primarily dramatic for dramatic series entries, in which the ongoing theme, storyline and main characters are presented under the same title and have continuity of production supervision,' the rules state.
Of course, with so much controversy surrounding Sam Levinson's project, not many fans actually expected The Idol to compete for Primetime Emmys. However, now that the show has been reduced to five episodes, the creators don't even have the option to apply for the Outstanding Drama Series award, as well as other categories.
The final episode of The Idol, 'Jocelyn Forever,' will land on HBO on June 2, 2023.
Source: Television Academy.