‘The Idol’ leads Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye and Lily-Rose Depp revealed how Britney Spears inspired the HBO music drama’s fictional pop star, Jocelyn.
TV & Movies
The Weeknd and Lily-Rose Depp revealed the pop icon’s influence.
HBO’s The Idol centers on Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp), a sexy, blonde singer who’s determined to reclaim her pop star throne, following a very public nervous breakdown. If the series description didn’t instantly bring Britney Spears to mind, an early teaser for the drama more blatantly featured the real-life musician’s 2007 hit, “Gimme More.” According to Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye, who co-created and stars in The Idol as Tedros, the similarities between Britney and Jocelyn aren’t entirely coincidental.
“It’s not about Britney at all, but how could we not pull inspiration from Britney, from Madonna, from every pop star that’s gone through any kind of serious pain?” he explained to The New York Times ahead of The Idol’s June 4 series premiere. “I’ve always called Lily one of the creators of the show, because I couldn’t write Jocelyn until we knew who was going to play her.
