Sam Levinson Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Check out TheWrap’s Cannes magazine here and all of our Cannes 2023 coverage here.

Euphoria universe is expanding, if that Alexa Demie The Idol cameo during the HBO miniseries' premiere episode on Sunday, June 4 is anything to go by.  Yes, the actress behind the iconic character of Maddy Perez popped up in the first episode of The Idol, which "set against the backdrop of the music industry, centers on a self-help guru and leader of a modern-day cult (The Weeknd), who develops a complicated relationship with an up-and-coming pop idol (Lily-Rose Depp)," per HBO.

The father figures in Sydney Sweeney’s life didn’t approve of her scandalous role in the hit show "Euphoria." Sweeney portrays high-schooler Cassie Howard in the risqué drama, which often features scenes about drugs, sex and trauma as students navigate love and friendships.  "Yeah, I didn’t prepare my dad…at all" Sweeney awkwardly laughed during an appearance on "Sunday Today with Willie Geist." "I mean how do you bring up a conversation? Also, when I talk to my dad it’s usually not about work…we talk father-daughter conversations." The 25-year-old actress continued to say that her father decided to watch "Euphoria" without telling her and her grandparents shockingly joined. "My dad and my grandpa turned it off and walked out," Sweeney explained.  As for the women in her life, Sweeney’s mother and grandmother appeared to be supportive of the actress.

Sydney Sweeney had to handle a mixed bag of reactions to her role on HBO's The actress recently opened up about her father having to turn off the program halfway through their first viewing. «I didn't prepare my dad at all,» Sweeney tells Willie Geist in an interview that will air in full this weekend on. She noted that her mom was more prepared because «she visited me on set quite a few times.»Sweeney plays Cassie on Sam Levinson's , a character often intertwined with very adult storylines. «How do you bring up a conversation? And also when I talk to my dad it's usually not about work,» Sweeney adds. «He decided he was going watch it without telling me, with his parents.

Despite their unbreakable character bond in HBO and A24’s upcoming series “The Idol”, Lily-Rose Depp sometimes maintained her distance from Abel ‘The Weeknd’ Tesfaye while filming the controversial series.

Thania Garcia The Weeknd taps Playboi Carti and “ultimate pop star” Madonna for “Popular,” the second single off “The Idol Vol. 1″ soundtrack. The glittery, upbeat song follows the previously released “Double Fantasy,” featuring Future, and comes ahead of the soundtrack slated for a June 30 debut. “I’m proud of it. I’m definitely proud of it,” said Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, during his appearance on Zane Lowe’s New Music Daily for Apple Music 1. “Me and Carti had this… We’ve had a different version of this song prior. So I’ve had these vocals for a while and I’ve kind of just worked around it, and then kind of kept it in the tuck. But now it felt like it was time.”

BLACKPINK member Jennie sang part of the classic ‘Killing Me Softly With His Song’ while performing as part of a Chanel showcase in Tokyo, Japan this week.Jennie sang the song – first released by Lori Lieberman in 1972, and popularised through renditions by both Roberta Flack and the Fugees – during Chanel’s 2022-23 Métiers d’art collection show in Tokyo.She performed the song as part of a mashup that also included a section of ‘Fly Me to the Moon’, penned by Bart Howard in 1954 and notably recorded by Frank Sinatra. The performance also included a jazzy version of her unreleased solo song ‘You & Me’.

“The Idol” trailer is officially here, and it’s full of tantalizing new footage that will surely make your jaw drop.

McKinley Franklin editor HBO has released the official trailer for its explicit Sam Levinson-directed series “The Idol,” which is set to premiere on June 4. “The Idol” premiered at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, making it the first television show to officially debut at the festival. The series stars Lily-Rose Depp as rising pop star Jocelyn and Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye as Tedros, a powerful, sex-obsessed cult leader.  After calling off her latest tour, Jocelyn is on a mission to reignite her career, with big dreams of becoming the biggest star in the industry. After she meets Tedros, Jocelyn is swiftly drawn into his world, where he promises to expand her career to new heights — at any cost.

which stars Lily-Rose Depp as Jocelyn, an up-and-coming pop singer, and Abel Tesfaye, aka The Weeknd, as Tedros, a charismatic self-help guru who is hell-bent on making Jocelyn a superstar.The new trailer for the forthcoming series — from creator Sam Levinson — dropped on Monday, giving fans a look at the sexy and scandalous storylines to come. From partying at cocaine-fueled ragers to blindfolding Jocelyn in the studio, Tedros' antics start to raise eyebrows in her inner circle, as he positions himself as the solution to all the young singer's problems.«You're not a human being,» he tells her in the clip, sounding sinister.

After months of drama and mostly negative reviews coming from its highly-publicized Cannes debut, HBO’s newest series, “The Idol,” is finally hitting TV screens later this week.  And in honor of the series finally making its debut, HBO has released a trailer for “The Idol,” which is definitely the buzziest show of the summer. The series follows the story of a pop star who falls under the influence of a creepy nightclub owner.

UPDATED: “You’re the American dream. Rags to riches. Trailers to mansions. You are f***ing Jocelyn. Just be you.” HBO released the final trailer Tuesday for music drama The Idol, starring Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye and Lily-Rose Depp, ahead of its June 4 premiere. Watch it above.

BLACKPINK‘s Jennie has opened up about working with Lily-rose Depp on the upcoming HBO series The Idol.South Korean singer Jennie, of the K-pop girl group BLACKPINK, recently spoke about her experience working on the forthcoming HBO original TV series, starring Lily-Rose Depp and Abel Tesfaye (also known as The Weeknd).In an interview with Women’s Wear Daily, Jennie touched what it was like to make her acting debut in The Idol and what it was like working with Depp. “It definitely was a challenge, because I’ve never experienced anything like that before. It was like, breaking a wall for me,” she said.“She really helped me a lot.

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer HBO’s buzzy new original series “The Idol” has been steadily building momentum on the road to its June 4 debut — including a lavish world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, followed by one of the most talked-about afterparties on the Croisette. The show follows an embattled young pop star named Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp), recovering from a psychotic break after the death of her mother and hounded relentlessly by industry vultures that need her back on top. A sketchy Svengali named Tedros (Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye) appears in her life, promising artistic and sexual liberation and fame beyond her wildest dreams. “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson steers the show with co-creators Tesfaye and Reza Fahim.

Wow! The word out of Cannes was pretty strong about the show that’s supposed to be HBO‘s next big thing. What we heard was mostly about how graphic and sexually explicit it was — but apparently that’s nothing compared to how BAD it is??

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer The upper deck at France’s Hotel Du-Cap-Eden-Roc offers a stunning coastal view of nearby city Cannes, the kind that Jay Gatsby would covet to peep Daisy Buchanan. On Tuesday, at one of the hottest parties at this year’s Cannes Film Festival, that view belonged to Graydon Carter. Standing alone with a female companion, the creator of the digital publication Air Mail and iconic former editor of Vanity Fair observed not a long-lost love but a cliffside full of movie stars, auteur directors and Hollywood power players. Carter’s Air Mail co-hosted an evening celebrating the 100-year anniversary of Warner Bros. Pictures, the latter represented by Warner Bros. Discovery CEO David Zaslav and his top content lieutenants. Leonardo DiCaprio, Scarlett Johansson and Colin Jost, Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese, Lily-Rose Depp, Sam Levinson, Jason Statham and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Rebel Wilson and more turned up to toast cinema and each other.

Lily-Rose Depp plays a modern pop star in the upcoming Max series, but for her inspiration for the character, she drew on icons from different generations.«Of course, there are so many incredible pop stars of today that I have nothing but admiration and respect for — and of course, you can't help but thinking of when you think of a character like Jocelyn — but we're definitely not telling anybody else's story or trying to base her on any real person,» the actress explained to ET's Rachel Smith over a virtual interview from the Cannes Film Festival, where the series premiered its first two episodes this week.«We actually drew from a lot of other influences that are not pop stars,» she added. «We thought a lot about Sharon Stone in and the Gene Tierneys and Lauren Bacalls… all of these women that were very inspiring to me for the role.»There was plenty of pop star inspiration for Depp to draw from on set, as well.

Lily-Rose Depp is one proud daughter!

When the credits rolled at the Lumiere Theatre Monday evening following the debut of Sam Levinson’s The Idol, the loudest and heartiest cheer was handed to actor Da’Vine Joy Randolph.

“The Idol” made its debut at Cannes, with the heavily hyped HBO series earning a five-minute standing ovation while also stirring up controversy for its edgy, plentiful sex sequences — which led The Wrap to describe the show as “luxury sleaze.”

Lily-Rose Depp is one proud daughter!ET's Rachel Smith spoke to Lily-Rose virtually from the Cannes Film Festival in the South of France Tuesday, where she said she couldn't be happier for her father, Johnny Depp, following the seven-minute standing ovation he received after the premiere of his new biographical drama, .The film marked the opening of the 76th annual event, and the  star's first leading role since his highly publicized defamation trial against his ex-wife, Amber Heard.The French-language film sees Johnny as King Louis XV. Set in the 18th century,  tells the story of Jeanne Bécu (Maïwenn), the daughter of an impoverished seamstress who rose through the Court of Louis XV and became his last official mistress.«I'm super happy for him.

“The Idol” creator Sam Levinson is taking the criticism around his upcoming HBO show in stride after accusations of a troubled production environment surfaced in a recent report. While on a panel Tuesday morning at Cannes Film Festival, Levinson addressed the scathing Rolling Stone article about his show, which detailed a “sense of chaos” on set and accused the series of having “disturbing sexual and physically violent scenes.”“We know that we’re making a show that is provocative.

Sometimes in Cannes it’s fun just to hover at the fringes of a party to observe the interactions, the body language, the eye-rolling, who’s drinking what and who isn’t.

The show is still days away from arriving on HBO, but the months leading up to the release have made “The Idol” a hot-button topic to discuss. And most of the discourse surrounds the behind-the-scenes drama that plagued the production.

idolizing.The upcoming HBO show “The Idol” — starring Lily-Rose Depp and Abel Tesfaye, aka “The Weeknd,” who is also a co-creator — is not getting glowing reviews from its debut at Cannes, where it screened its first two episodes on Monday.“The Idol,” or 50 SHADES OF TESFAYE: A Pornhub-homepage odyssey starring Lily-Rose Depp’s areolas and The Weeknd’s greasy rat tail,” one critic derided after viewing it.“Love that this will help launch the HBO Max rebrand, should slot nicely next to House Hunters!”Co-created by Sam Levinson of “Euphoria” fame, “The Idol” is about an up-and-coming pop star Jocelyn — played by Depp, who is the 23-year-old daughter of Johnny Depp — as she gets entangled with a sinister self-help guru, Tedros played by Tesfaye. The production has already been besieged by scandal, including an April report from Rolling Stone in which sources on the production described a chaotic environment behind the scenes and called it “torture porn” and “rape fantasy.”At the time, Tesfaye, 33, replied by posting a taunting message: “Did we upset you?”Another viewer who caught it at the film festival commented, “Ep 2 is straight-up pornographic there’s an entire 10-minute scene of The Weeknd talking dirty to Lily while she fingers herself for him, then he tells her to suck his c–k and she gives him head. The worst part is that Sam Levinson originally wanted that scene to be longer, too.”She also added that Depp’s character is nude or having sex in every episode.

The Weeknd and Lily-Rose Depp pose together at the photocall for The Idol at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday (May 23) in Cannes, France.

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media Reporter One of the most talked-about titles at this year’s Cannes Film Festival isn’t a movie, but a TV show. “The Idol,” a scandalous, sexy and sure-to-be-polarizing series (think “Euphoria” but set in the world of pop music) about the price of fame, premiered two of the first five episodes at the festival and instantly inspired a thousand hot-takes about all that on-screen nudity, bodily fluids and Hollywood sycophants. But before “The Idol” — the brainchild of “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson and Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye — even made its way to the Croisette, an explosive report by Rolling Stone detailed on-set turmoil, including allegations of a toxic work environment, last-minute script rewrites and budgets gone wild.

Yes, there’s a reference made to Britney Spears in Sam Levinson’s new HBO series, The Idol, and Lily-Rose Depp does play a Britney like character whose looking to rise from her funk, but as the Euphoria creator said at the Cannes press conference today, “We’re not trying to tell a story about any particular pop star.”

HBO’s The Idol have sparked controversy among critics, with many criticising the overtly sexual nature of the series.The episodes were shown for the first time at this year’s Cannes Film Festival (May 22), making it the first show to have its official debut at the prestigious cinema event.It stars both Lily-Rose Depp and The Weeknd — who is working under his real name Abel Tesfaye — and follows the story of a world-famous pop star (Depp), whose relationship with sleazy mentor (Tesfaye) highlights the dark underbelly of the showbiz world.Following the first two episodes of the long-awaited series, the show — which is directed by Euphoria creator Sam Levinson — received a five-minute standing ovation from the audience. Critics, however, have taken a different approach – with many being quick to criticise the series for its explicit content and “regressive” narrative.A review by Variety proclaimed the series to play “like a sordid male fantasy” which “perpetuates the myth that pop stars are corporate puppets with no say in their own image-making”.

Lord, give me strength. From the first minute of “The Idol,” the already controversial music-based television series from HBO Max (sorry, Max), it’s clear that creators Abel Tesfaye (formerly known as The Weeknd), Sam Levinson, and Reza Fahim want to incite a reaction.

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic What The Weeknd wants, The Weeknd gets in “The Idol,” a skintastic, dark-side-of-showbiz fable that perpetuates the myth that pop stars are corporate puppets with no say in their own image-making, even as it allows hit-maker The Weeknd to call the shots (and reshoots, apparently, since the five-part HBO series was overhauled late in production to suit him). Picture “Blonde” as Joe Eszterhas might have written it, but with better music. After making a toe-dip cameo as himself in A24’s “Uncut Gems,” the R&B phenom-turned-TV producer plunges head-first into acting here, teaming with “Euphoria” creator Sam Levinson to imagine a shady super-predator just looking to corrupt an unsuspecting young pop singer. The edgy, high-gloss HBO series, which premiered the first two of its five episodes at the Cannes Film Festival, demands a lot of star Lily-Rose Depp. She plays “rags-to-riches, trailers-to-mansions” Jocelyn, a mono-monikered Britney or Miley type who seems empowered one moment, impressionable the next.