The Destiny depicter on the HBO controversial series also shuts down Rolling Stone's report that claims the show had gone 'disgustingly off the rails' and been turned into 'sexual torture porn.'
- Jun 30, 2023
AceShowbiz - "The Idol" star Da'Vine Joy Randolph comes to the HBO show's defense. In an interview with Variety, Da'Vine defended The Weeknd, who stars on and creates the show, amid backlash and talked about potential season 2 of the series.
The actress revealed that she trusted the vision the "Starboy" singer, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, had for the show. "What I was told was at the end of the day, Abel had a vision for it and wanted to see it through," Da'Vine said in the interview published on Thursday, June 29. "He wanted Sam to be more than just executive. He wanted him to do it - which lucked out for me, because I got to work with Sam."
She also shut down Rolling Stone's report that claims the show had gone "disgustingly off the rails" and been turned into "sexual torture porn." She added, "I never ever saw anything. If I did see anyone being mistreated - especially since I was one of the older actors - I would have said something, or I would have walked off that set."
Da'Vine additionally denied that anything was "out of the ordinary" on the set. "There wasn't anything … abusive or crazy," she stressed. "And on top of it, I think they gave even more love, care, sensitivity and respect, due to the fact of what the actors have to do. The crew was very supportive, we knocked it out and we made something that I think was quite great and different."
The "Only Murders in the Building" star later discussed a potential second season of the controversial series. "I think that everyone's intention is to have a second season. This was never intended to be a limited series," she shared. "Nothing is official, but HBO is quite happy."
In the interview, Da'Vine also talked about The Weeknd and fellow co-creator Sam Levinson scrapping the original version, helmed by Amy Seimetz, and re-shot the entire series. "This happens all the time," the 37-year-old explained to the outlet. "I've had things where I've been let go because they changed the concept, or they changed the lead person - and then I no longer fit into that show."
"Being completely transparent, there were no red flags because to me, that made sense - Abel had a vision that didn't get executed, he wanted to make sure he really believed in it, he wanted to make sure it's done how he sees it, so he got Sam on board to do it himself," she continued.
On "The Idol", Da'Vine portrays Destiny. Her character is described as Jocelyn's (Lily-Rose Depp) manager who is against sleazy nightclub owner Tedros (The Weeknd) who deems himself the captain of the pop star's career.
