Yahoo News The Idol star The Weeknd shares behind-the-scenes photos following finale
The Idol's star and co-creator The Weeknd has shared some behind-the-scenes photos from filming.
The Weeknd, who starred in the show as Tedros alongside Lily-Rose Depp as Jocelyn, posted a series of images on his Instagram praising his co-star but also alluding to the show's "bumpy journey" to the screen.
Related: The Idol finale's hairbrush scene explained
He captioned the set of images that he shared yesterday (July 3): "The finale. grateful to share this moment with you all as the season comes to an end."
Tagging Depp and co-creator Sam Levinson in his post, The Weeknd added: "Continue to push the vision no matter how bumpy the journey. Jocelyn Forever."
The first photo in the gallery shows Tedros and Jocelyn face to face, with further images showing cast and crew embracing in between takes, reviewing scripts, and in conversation with each other.
The Idol season one finale aired on July 2, with the episode containing many twists and turns. The music industry drama has been the subject of controversy since its premiere screening at Cannes, with the five-episode series appearing to divide viewers and critics.
A Rolling Stone report in March made serious allegations about the atmosphere on set and working environment, with one insider alleging some scenes in draft scripts were akin to "sexual torture porn".
These allegations were denied by HBO, Levinson and Depp, who said "it wasn't my experience shooting the show".
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The series has also faced criticism for its use of nudity and Levinson's approach to the show's female characters.
He told press at Cannes: "We live in a very sexualised world. I can't speak to other countries, but especially in the States, the influence of pornography is really strong in terms of the psyche of young people...
"Lily and I had a lot of discussions about who Jocelyn is as a person, what she's feeling, what she's angling, who she's playing to, and from that point, the sexuality comes out of that character."
The Idol was also originally meant to run for six episodes, with the season cut to five episodes after Levison overhauled the show and made big changes.
The Idol aired on HBO in the US, and is available on Sky Atlantic and NOW in the UK.
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