Why Do People Hate The Idol So Much? The Show's Controversy Explained

The Idol, which premiered a week ago, has already been faced with disappointingly low ratings. Critics and viewers alike seem to agree that the show is problematic, and the negative PR the show's created after just two episodes is unlikely to die down anytime soon.

However, the controversies began even before the show's debut. Numerous reputable online magazines reported issues on set months before its release. After viewing the first two episodes at the Cannes Film Festival, critics only seemed to validate these concerns. So, what lies at the heart of the controversy surrounding The Idol?

Dramatic Change in Direction

Amy Seimetz, known for her work on the dark indie thrillers Sun Don't Shine and She Dies Tomorrow, was initially hired to direct most of the show. Her episodes were already in post-production when she decided to leave the project, a move that several other cast and crew members followed. Euphoria's creator, Sam Levinson, then assumed control of direction. Levinson's significantly different vision for the show contributed to the burgeoning controversy.

'Really curious to know what the Amy Seimetz version of The Idol would've been. I think that would've ruled,' a fan noted on Twitter.

Toxic Environment on Set

According to the crew, the filming process became a nightmare when Levinson chose to completely revamp the show's plot and direction. That led to frequent script rewrites and resulted in crew exhaustion. A similar issue was reported during the production of Euphoria.

'He's able to walk away unscathed and everybody still wants to work with him… People ignore the red flags and follow him regardless,' a crew member commented on Levinson.

Controversial Male Gaze

The series' creative direction became a major point of criticism. Reportedly, one of the factors contributing to this was The Weeknd himself, who allegedly didn't want the series to have strong feminist undertones. Levinson appeared to support him by transforming a series originally critical of patriarchy and the toxic industry into a fairytale filled with explicit content.

'It was a show about a woman who was finding herself sexually, turned into a show about a man who gets to abuse this woman and she loves it,' another crew member said.

'The idol deserves nothing. It’s peak misogyny,' a fan noted about the plot.

The reviews only reinforced these concerns, with the most prevalent description for the first two episodes being 'torture porn.' Nonetheless, it might be worth watching the entire season to form an impartial opinion. The third episode is set to release on 18 June.

Source: Rolling Stone, Twitter, Twitter.