The Weeknd Says ‘The Idol’ Sex Scenes Aren’t Meant to Be ‘Sexy’
The Weeknd doesn’t want anyone to get off on “The Idol.”
Abel Tesfaye, aka The Weeknd, who co-created and stars in the HBO series, told GQ that the “gluttonous” sex scenes between his character Tedros and Lily-Rose Depp’s Jocelyn are supposed to be cringe.
“There’s nothing sexy about it,” Tesfaye said, citing a nod to “Basic Instinct” in the first episode. “When we use ‘Basic Instinct’ as a reference, we’re using [Paul] Verhoeven. Verhoeven is the king of ‘90s satire thriller — yes, there’s moments of ‘sexy’ in his films but there are other moments that are very cheesy and hilarious.”
Tesfaye continued, “How ever 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.”
The “After Hours” singer added that Tedros is purposefully portrayed as a “despicable psychopath” and is not whom the audience should identify with.
“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,'” Tesfaye said. “Whatever it is that he’s doing. Even the sex, it’s so gluttonous, especially in Episode 2. ‘Gluttony’ is the only word I can think of [to describe it]. He can’t believe he’s there. He comes off like such a loser. Those moments are the humanity that you find in a psychopath, the chink in his armor.”
He added, “That’s all intentional to heighten the camp of it all. But the reality is, 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. He’s despicable, a psychopath — why sugarcoat it? But he’s somehow useful to this girl, and it’s unfortunate and we hate to see it.”
The “Uncut Gems” actor added that he in no way relates to the nefarious club owner-slash-manager Tedros and was hesitant to even take on the role.
“I initially never wrote it with me in mind. That’s just the truth,” Tesfaye said. “But as the years went by, Sam [Levinson] convinced me and had some really great ideas for the show. And it got to a place where the only way I could play this role was if it’s something completely different from who I am. And I can distance myself from that character. I wanted to make sure he looked nothing like me, acted nothing like me, just a totally different person.”
“The Idol” premieres on HBO and Max on Sundays, with Episode 3 coming up this weekend.