Controversial series The Idol releases premiere date and new teaser with Lily-Rose Depp

Lily-Rose Depp stars in the sexy new show about a troubled singer’s determination to be back on top.

A new teaser trailer and premiere date has been released for the provocative new series, The Idol.

The controversial drama will premiere on June 5 on Binge – and if the newly dropped teaser is anything to go by, viewers are in for a wild ride.

Set against the backdrop of the music industry and created by the mastermind behind Euphoria, Sam Levinson, the series stars Lily-Rose Depp as a singer named Jocelyn, who is determined to reclaim her crown of greatest pop star in America following a nervous breakdown.

The Idol stars Lily-Rose Depp and Abel Tesfaye. Picture: Binge

But her comeback hits an obstacle when she meets nightclub promoter Tedros (played by Abel Tesfaye, aka The Weeknd), a self-help guru who starts a turbulent relationship with Jocelyn, only to be more trouble than help.

The drama also stars Schitt’s Creek’s Dan Levy, Blackpink’s Jennie Kim and Australian singer Troye Sivan.

Interestingly, the teaser to the six-part limited series includes a homage to real-life pop diva Britney Spears, whose past is reminiscent to Jocelyn’s modern-day dilemmas.

The clip even samples Spears’ hit song Gimme More as Jocelyn says in a voiceover: “When’s the last truly f***ing nasty, nasty, bad pop girl?”

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Lily-Rose Depp plays a troubled singer in the series. Picture: Binge

The Idol has been surrounded by controversy after Levinson took over from director Amy Seimetz months ago. A damning piece published by Rolling Stone magazine last month alleged that 13 members of the cast and crew felt discomfort with the show’s new creative direction, calling it sexually “disturbing”.

“It was like any rape fantasy that any toxic man would have in the show – and then the woman comes back for more because it makes her music better,” one crew member told the magazine of Levinson’s version, according toPage Six.

“It was like, ‘What is this? What am I reading here?’ It was like sexual torture porn,” said another production team member.

Lily-Rose Depp and Abel Tesfaye are aware of the criticism surrounding the series but back director Sam Levinson. Picture: Binge

But the show’s stars Depp – who is the daughter of Hollywood star Johnny Depp and model Vanessa Paradis – and Tesfaye are backing Levinson and his vision.

“Sam is, for so many reasons, the best director I have ever worked with,” the 23-year-old actress told Page Six via her representative. “Never have I felt more supported or respected in a creative space, my input and opinions more valued. Working with Sam is a true collaboration in every way – it matters to him, more than anything, not only what his actors think about the work, but how we feel performing it.”

“He hires people whose work he esteems and has always created an environment in which I felt seen, heard, and appreciated.”

As for Tesfaye, he threw shade at Rolling Stone in an Instagram Story at the time, calling the magazine “irrelevant” and “past its prime”.

Originally published as Controversial series The Idol releases premiere date and new teaser with Lily-Rose Depp