Lily-Rose Depp drops racy ‘Idol’ pics after controversial show ends

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Lily-Rose Depp marked the end of The Idol by sharing raunchy behind-the-scenes pics from the controversial HBO series.

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“That’s a wrap on season 1 of @theidol,” Depp, 24, captioned a slideshow of photos shared to her Instagram.

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“Thank you all for watching, listening, laughing & crying with us.”

Depp also paid tribute to the creative team behind the HBO show, which followed Jocelyn, a fallen pop star who falls under the influence of a dangerous cult leader Tedros (played by R&B star The Weeknd).

“Thank you to everyone-cast, crew, and everyone in between-who poured their hearts into making this show,” she wrote. Depp then praised co-creators Sam Levinson and The Weeknd “for the wildest, most beautiful journey of my life.”

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Following its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May, The Idol was panned by critics and fans. Instead of being seen as an insightful investigation into the perils of fame, the show was blasted as “pornographic and boring.”

In the lead up to its release, Rolling Stone published an expose that included over a dozen people alleging problems both in front-of and behind the camera.

“It was like, ‘What is this? What am I reading here?’ It was like sexual torture porn,” one person claimed of their experience working on the drama.

“What I signed up for was a dark satire of fame and the fame model in the 21st century; the things that we subject our talent and stars to, the forces that put people in the spotlight and how that can be manipulated in the post-Trump world,” a second production member told the publication, adding: “It went from satire to the thing it was satirizing.”

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Sources also said that changes Euphoria creator Levinson added to the series contained “disturbing sexual and physically violent scenes.”

Depp, who is the daughter of model Vanessa Paradis and actor Johnny Depp, defended the production, telling Page Six through her rep that Levinson is “the best director I have ever worked with.”

“Never have I felt more supported or respected in a creative space, my input and opinions more valued,” she said.

Meanwhile, in a post to his Instagram, The Weeknd threw shade at Rolling Stone calling the outlet “irrelevant” and “past its prime.”

But over the course of the series’ five episodes, The Idol became a talking point on social media as fans ruthlessly criticized its storyline and acting.

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One episode ended with what British GQ dubbed “the worst sex scene in history,” while Variety asked: “Why are The Weeknd’s acting skills non-existent?”

In the comments section of Depp’s Instagram post, viewers lambasted The Weeknd with one person declaring the Grammy winner “should stick to music.”

Another critic said Depp’s talent was wasted, writing, “You deserved so much better. this show was incredibly abusive and honestly i don’t know how you’re defending it.”

After Sunday night’s finale, Depp broke down Season 1’s twist ending.

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“Jocelyn is a very strategic and calculated person,” explained Depp in a featurette discussing the episode’s surprise end. “She knows what she wants and she’s going to stop at nothing to get it. What we realize at the end is that Tedros is her muse and that she got what she needed out of him.”

Depp continued by saying that the show made it seem that Tedros was manipulating Jocelyn, but it was actually the other way around.

“I think a lot of the audience will watch a few episodes and think this guy is taking advantage of her,” she continued. “By the end she realizes that she knows exactly what he’s doing and she knows exactly what she’s doing.”

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Whether there is a second season is still very much up in the air. One source told Page Six: “This was never meant to be a long-running show, it was always … a limited series.”

But another insider told the outlet the series could return. “The door is definitely still open — [there’s] definitely not a decision [yet].”

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Twitter: @markhdaniell

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