TV

The Weeknd Slams Rolling Stone Report On “The Idol”: “Did We Upset You?”

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The Weeknd is on Rolling Stone’s neck following a recent claim surrounding the set of HBO’s The Idol. The Weeknd shared a snippet of his upcoming series, where he throws shade at the publication. In the clip, we see self-help guru Tedros (played by The Weeknd) seated poolside with Jocelyn (played by Lily-Rose Depp) conversing with Dan Levy’s character. When a Rolling Stone cover story is mentioned, Tedros dismisses the publication as “irrelevant,” mirroring his own feelings towards them.

“Rolling Stone? Aren’t they a little irrelevant?” Tedros asks. Levy explained how the publication is a “heritage brand” before Jocelyn said they’re “past its prime.” “Nobody cares about Rolling Stone … Rolling Stone has 6 million followers on Instagram, half of them probably bots. And Jocelyn has 78 million followers. All real. So she does a photoshoot, she tags them, they get her followers, more money for Rolling Stone, nothing for Jocelyn.” The Weeknd captioned the clip, “@rollingstone did we upset you?”

Rolling Stone’s Report On The Weeknd’s “The Idol”

Rolling Stone shared a report consisting of interviews with 11 members of the cast and crew who detailed the chaotic production. First, Amy Seimetz was announced to direct all six episodes before leaving the series as part of a “major creative overhaul.” However, the report details an alleged “shitshow” behind the scenes that has veered far from the central message that was initially conveyed in the story. “It went from satire to the thing it was satirizing,” one source said. Another added described parts of the script – which have not been filmed – “like sexual torture porn.”

HBO issued a statement to Complex following the bombshell report. “The initial approach on the show and production of the early episodes, unfortunately, did not meet HBO standards so we chose to make a change. Throughout the process, the creative team has been committed to creating a safe, collaborative, and mutually respectful working environment, and last year, the team made creative changes they felt were in the best interest of both the production and the cast and crew. We look forward to sharing The Idol with audiences soon.”

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One Of Megan Thee Stallion’s Most Controversial Projects Was A Clue On ‘Jeopardy!’

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Megan Thee Stallion may have been laying low since testifying at Tory Lanez’s assault trial, but when you’re Jeopardy! famous, you’re never far from the public’s memory. One of the Houston rapper’s most controversial projects was a clue on last night’s episode of the popular quiz show, as noted by the reporter who kept the public informed throughout the trial, Meghann Cuniff — aka Meghann Thee Reporter, as fans fondly dubbed her for her coverage.

“I try not to think about work when I watch @Jeopardy,” she explained on Twitter. “I didn’t succeed tonight.” The clue in question referenced Megan’s 2021 project, for which she went to court with her label, 1501 Certified Entertainment. “Her 2021 album Something for Thee Hotties is a compilation of her freestyles and some previously unreleased songs.”

That’s a characterization of the project that 1501 may take issue with. After Megan sued to have a. court declare Something For Thee Hottie an album rather than a mixtape under the terms of her contract, 1501 countersued, arguing that because it was a compilation of freestyles, it didn’t meet the eligibility standard.

The album/tape, which is 45 minutes long only constitutes 29 minutes of “original” material according to 1501, meaning Megan would still have one more album on her contract term after Traumazine, which she wants to count as her final album. The contentious debate continues but at least 1501 founder Carl Crawford has vowed to make it a more agreeable in future by no longer discussing it on social media.

However that turns out, perhaps Meg will find comfort in knowing that even with her taking a break from the spotlight, she’s never far from fans’ thoughts.

Megan Thee Stallion is a Warner Music artist. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

Megan Thee Stallion Receives Second Mention On “Jeopardy”

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Celebrated game show Jeopardy has featured a host of hip-hop artists as answers in their past. Most recently, the series made famous by the late Alex Trebek featured Atlanta rapper JID in their “Fight Songs” category. Kanye West has been name-dropped as well, with his Jesus Is King album appearing on their “GOAT” episode. The latest spitter to be showcased on the set is Houston hottie Megan Thee Stallion, who is currently taking a well-deserved break from social media.

Megan’s compilation album Something for Thee Hotties shows up in Jeopardy’s “Rappers” category. Once new host Mayim Bialik reads the clue off the screen, contestant Lucas presses the buzzer almost immediately. “Who is Megan Thee Stallion,” he answers to the fine tune of $200. Something for Thee Hotties, released back in 2021, hosts both previously unreleased singles and freestyles from the rapper. While this certainly is a clear show of her celebrity, this isn’t the first time the “Plan B” rhymer has been mentioned on the nationally-syndicated series. In 2019, Megan’s “Stallion” moniker was the answer to the following: “Oddly, female rapper Megan Pete calls herself ‘Megan Thee’ this word for a male horse.”

Jeopardy Features Megan Thee Stallion Again In Latest Airing

Megan Thee Stallion has been quite as of late, though she was recently spotted celebrating her birthday. The 28-year-old is currently in the midst of her ongoing legal battles against Tory Lanez. Supporters and spectators alike have continued to comment on the 2020 shooting incident, with no word coming from the hip-hop star since the trial has begun. Others have gone on to show Meg love during her absence, including friend and “Freaky Girls” collaborator SZA. “Jus wanted to show some love to Meg,” the singer wrote. “Your[e] beautiful and we’re all rooting for you [white heart emoji].”

The rapper was also seen on Valentine’s Day with longtime boyfriend Pardison Fontaine. Though there were multiple rumors that the two had split, Pardi went on to dispel the rumors on his Instagram Story. The photo sees the two taking shots out of heart-shaped glasses as they celebrate their love. This comes after Megan’s man wrote “looks like I got the boot” in a new social post.

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The Weeknd Reportedly Became Less Hands-On With ‘The Idol’ After His HBO Show Had A Major Change In Direction

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In a new piece from Rolling Stone, anonymous members of the cast and crew of Sam Levinson and The Weeknd’s forthcoming HBO show, The Idol, opened up about the reportedly toxic work environment that spiraled out of control.

The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) both starred and co-created the show. However, it was originally set to be directed by Amy Seimetz before she left the show — and Levinson (Euphoria) took over in her place. This is reportedly when the chaos started, resulting in an overhaul of Seimetz’s direction and shoots.

“It was like the Weeknd wanted one show that was all about him — Sam was on board with that,” a source shared. However, they also faced alleged difficulty with Tesfaye’s schedule as a musician, causing him to be less hands-on: “It was really frustrating because they were working so hard to make it possible to shoot and be released with his concert or whatever his timeline was [and] it all got thrown out the window.”

The piece goes on to note that three crew members claim that despite Tesfaye’s writing credits on the series, he didn’t contribute much to scripts during the reshoots.

Last April, there was also a Deadline report that Tesfaye felt the show was focusing too much on his co-star, Lily Rose-Depp, as he thought it had too much of a “female perspective.”

The Weeknd Reportedly Caused ‘The Idol’ To Be Overhauled Because Of Its ‘Female Perspective’

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The Weeknd’s breakout role in the HBO series The Idol, might not have been quite the creative environment parties were looking for. The “Die For You” singer may have broken several streaming records, including becoming the first artist to cross the 100 million monthly listeners metric; however, according to reports, his television and film career could be off to a rocky start.

The recording artist, real name Abel Makkonen Tesfaye joined forces with Reza Fahim and Euphoria creator Sam Levinson to bring, in the network’s words, the “sleaziest love story in all of Hollywood” to light. While the show, slated to be released later this year, has recently undergone a “new creative direction,” Rolling Stone reports that the pivot wasn’t received well by cast and crew members.

According to Rolling Stone, the Oscar-nominated singer was not pleased that his co-star Lily-Rose Depp’s character received a bulk of the plot’s attention. As a result, allegedly, Tesfaye championed a major behind-the-scenes narrative shift to drop the story’s “feminist lens.”

A source told RS, “It was like the Weeknd wanted one show that was all about him — Sam was on board with that.” This could have supposedly played a part in director Amy Seimetz’s exit from the series back in April 2022. Another source shared, “What I signed up for was a dark satire of fame and the fame model in the 21st century,” but since the changes, “It went from satire to the thing it was satirizing.”

“It was like, ‘What is this? What am I reading here,’” said the source adding, “It was like sexual torture porn.”

The source shared that although Seimetz’s version would have contained sex scenes and nudity, production sources claim Levinson dramatically ramped up the explicit content with Tesfaye’s full support after taking over as director.

The outlet reached out to both Levinson and Tesfaye for comment. However, neither answered the request. On the other hand, Depp did provide a statement to Rolling Stone, in which she specifically sings the praises of Levinson. “[Levinson is] the best director,” said Depp before adding that she “felt more supported or respected in a creative space, my input, and opinions more valued.”

Despite the anonymous reports shared with RS, HBO shared in a statement, “the creative team has been committed to creating a safe, collaborative, and mutually respectful working environment, and last year, the team made creative changes they felt were in the best interest of both the production and the cast and crew.”

Leaked Scripts For HBO’s ‘The Idol’ Reportedly Feature The Weeknd’s Character Doing Some Disturbingly Violent And Sexual Things

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HBO’s upcoming series The Idol is already proving to be one of the most talked about series of 2023, despite not having an actual premiere date. However, the Sam Levinson and Abel “The Weeknd” Tesfaye-created series seems to be proving rather chaotic and disastrous behind the scenes, not unlike the second season of Levinson’s teen drama, Euphoria.

Last April, the show was reported to go into an overhaul, with Levinson taking over as the show’s director, in place of Amy Seimetz, who was originally set to direct the series.

According to several anonymous sources, who spoke to Rolling Stone, Levinson ramped up the sexual content during the overhaul.

According to Rolling Stone:

“At various points, Levinson’s scripts contained disturbing sexual and physically violent scenes between [Lily Rose] Depp and Tesfaye’s characters, three sources familiar with the matter claim. In one draft episode, there allegedly was a scene where Tesfaye bashes in Depp’s face, and her character smiles and asks to be beaten more, giving Tesfaye an erection. (This scene was never shot, the source says.) Another proposed scenario was for Depp to carry an egg in her vagina and if she dropped or cracked the egg, Tesfaye’s character would refuse to “rape” her — which sent Depp’s character into a spiral, begging him to ‘rape’ her because she believed he was the key to her success. (This scene also was not filmed because production couldn’t find a way to realistically shoot the scene without having Depp physically insert the egg, another source explains.)”

Another source claimed that while The Idol was supposed to explore and satirize the dark side of 21st-century stardom, the show lost its original messaging amid the overhaul.

“It was a show about a woman who was finding herself sexually, turned into a show about a man who gets to abuse this woman and she loves it,” said the source.

At the time of writing, it is unclear which scenes will make it into the final show, as many of the sources say that scripts were being changed and rewritten daily. According to one source, Levinson had stopped turning in scripts to the higher-ups at HBO at one point during production.

The Weeknd’s HBO Show ‘The Idol’ Is Reportedly A ‘Sh*tshow’ Due To Drastic Changes, Production Issues, And So Much More

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When it was reported that the buzzy upcoming HBO show The Idol was undergoing massive production changes last April, all anyone could do was speculate on the supposed “new creative direction” it would take. Interest in the show was high, given its all-star cast consisting of co-creator Abel Tesfaye (better known as The Weeknd) and Lily-Rose Depp and the involvement of high-profile producer Sam Levinson of Euphoria fame.

However, a new report from Rolling Stone suggests that the changes have mostly been for the worst, with the show going from “a dark satire of fame and the fame model in the 21st century,” according to one production member, “to the thing it was satirizing.”

The show, which was to follow Depp’s character as she became involved in a cult led by Tesfaye’s character, was overhauled as The Weeknd apparently felt it was focusing too much on the “female perspective” and wanted to highlight his character more. This reportedly led to director Amy Seimetz (She Dies Tomorrow, The Girlfriend Experience) dropping out and Levinson replacing her as director, then promptly throwing out everything she’d already shot — 80 percent of the six-episode series.

The new material has been described as “any rape fantasy that any toxic man would have in the show,” with lurid depictions of sexual encounters between Tesfaye and Depp’s characters in scripts, ramped-up explicit nudity, and even a violent scene in which Tesfaye’s character beats Depp. While some of these scenes were never shot, one source described the scripts as “sexual torture porn.”

Many of the sources say they don’t even know what will make it into the final show because so many scenes were reshot, scripts were changed daily, and the shoot went wildly over budget and time. High-profile castings such as Blackpink’s Jennie amounted to inconsequential storylines, with a crew member saying, “Her job was to sit there [and] look pretty, basically.” Meanwhile, other actors were “wiped from the show” entirely after thinking they’d gotten their big breaks.

With so many issues, there’s no telling how the show itself will actually turn out, but HBO continues to promote it with multiple trailers, even though a release date has yet to be determined (it’s still aiming for sometime in 2023).

We’ll see if Levinson, The Weeknd, or any of the cast have anything to say, but for now, things aren’t looking great. Still the show is already shaping up to be another hit for HBO — the real question is, will it be worth it?

Zendaya Reportedly Set to Earn $1M for Each Episode of ‘Euphoria’ Season 3

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Zendaya Reportedly Set to Earn $1M for Each Episode of 'Euphoria' Season 3

Euphoria may not be back this year, but when it does, the Brinks truck will back up to Zendaya’s house for every episode. A new report reveals Zendaya will bring in $1 million per episode of the show. This comes after Zendaya is a two-time winner for the Outstanding Lead Actress Emmy as her role as Rue Bennett.

According to GQ, Zendaya was an executive producer on the show for the second season and became the youngest person ever to be nominated for a production Emmy at 25.

Over the weekend, Zendaya appeared at the NAACP Image Awards, where she had the below moment of “servin’.”

The post Zendaya Reportedly Set to Earn $1M for Each Episode of ‘Euphoria’ Season 3 appeared first on The Source.

Omarion to Recap 2019 ‘Millennium’ Tour in New Docuseries ‘Omega – The Gift & The Curse’

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Omarion to Recap 2019 'Millennium' Tour in New Docuseries 'Omega - The Gift & The Curse'

Words by: Brandon Simmons

2000s R&B group, B2K, is recapping their 2019 time on the Millenium Tour. After breaking up in 2004, the group reunited in 2019 to perform on the tour alongside Bow Wow, Mario, Lloyd, Keri Hilson, Pleasure P, and other artists from the early 2000s. They documented the tour in a five-part series titled, Omega: The Gift and the Curse. Throughout the three months, fans will see how the group interacts on and off the stage.

Recently, the WE network revealed a juicy trailer for the series. Omega: The Gift and the Curse will be narrated by Omarion as he gives his perspective of his relationship with his ex-bandmates. In this trailer, you can see that all group members are not on the same page. Raz B appears to have issues with J. Boog while at this time, Lil Fizz was dating Omarion’s baby mother, Apryl Jones, which also takes a toll on the group. Also, around this time, the music world received the devastating news that Los Angeles rapper Nipsey Hussle was murdered. Viewers get a chance to see how the group was affected by the news. The series airs on WE on March 2nd.

Recently, a woman online claimed she was engaged to the “Touch” singer and sent him a total of $4,500 throughout the past few years. The woman who believes she is engaged to Omarion appeared on Dr. Phil to share her story, for which Omarion had a message for. During the episode, Dr. Phil played a recorded video from Omarion, in which he states that she needs to be careful and aware of catfishers online. The video was also posted to the R&B crooner’s Instagram page with a caption informing his supporters that he does not scam people.

“Be smart. So many people have stories saying they spoke with me online. I don’t take advantage of people. I respect and appreciate people who support me.”

– Omarion

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