When I ask Abel Tesfaye if the sex scene in the latest episode of The Idol was supposed to feel “sexy,” to say that his resounding “no” was emphatic would be an understatement. Though it’s only been on for two weeks, the HBO series—in which Tesfaye portrays Tedros, a mysterious club owner trying to get his hooks into Jocelyn (Lily-Rose Depp), a vulnerable pop star—has already become something of a lightning rod for controversy and discourse. Is the sex, which across two hours has already flirted with everything from erotic asphyxiation to knife play, too graphic? Is it all provocative for provocation’s sake? Just what are Tesfaye, who co-created and co-wrote the show with his collaborator Reza Fahim and Chief Provocateur Sam Levinson, actually trying to do here?
Embodying the character of Tedros is Tesfaye’s bid to present a drastically different image of himself in pop culture than the one we usually associate with him as The Weeknd, the music persona who’s re-made pop and R&B in his image for the last decade. The sleazy, seductive club owner—and maybe cult leader?—might have some viewers bemused, but as Tesfaye tells it, that’s the intention. Everything about the character, from his persona to his true motives, is being parceled out slowly across what Tesfaye describes as “a five-hour film,” to the point where he can’t identify a specific scene that he’s excited about as his first foray into acting. Instead, he encourages viewers to go along for the whole experience. GQ talked to Tesfaye, who’s currently on tour in Copenhagen, over a short call to hear him out.
GQ: We’re two episodes in. How are you feeling about the response so far?
The Weeknd: I’m loving it. It’s definitely shaken up the culture for sure [laughs]. We knew we were making something dark and controversial but true to what we want to say.
Do you think the audience is engaging with it in the way that you intended?
I just think discussion is healthy, no matter what. To me it’s like, I’m just happy that there’s conversation. That’s important for anything I do, especially this new medium that I’m in.
Talk to me about creating Tedros. As this latest episode showed, it’s not a character that we’re gonna get the full picture of at once, but that we’re still learning about in pieces.
That was very important. When I’m trying to explain who he is, it’s tough without revealing too much, without peeling away too much of the layers. You try to be as mysterious as possible about who the character is so that you can take [the audience] on this journey. But piece by piece, week by week, we’ll reveal who he is. But he’s what you see on screen. He’s definitely a challenge. He’s despicable, a psychopath—why sugarcoat it? But he’s somehow useful to this girl, and it’s unfortunate and we hate to see it.
There’s an almost vampiric element to your performance in certain scenes and the way he’s shot.
Absolutely. There’s an ominous vibe to him, aesthetically, in certain shots–
Like that scene in episode 1 at Jocelyn’s gate.
Yeah, that’s all intentional to heighten the camp of it all. But the reality is, there’s nothing really mysterious or hypnotizing about him. And we did that on purpose with his look, his outfits, his hair—the guy’s a douchebag. You can tell he cares so much about what he looks like, and he thinks he looks good. But then you see these weird moments of him alone—he rehearses, he’s calculated. And he needs to do that, or he has nothing, he’s pathetic. Which is true of a lot of people who are a fish out of water, put into these scenarios.
You look at him, and this is a score—Jocelyn might be the biggest score he’s ever had. It’s very obvious. He’s over-indulging, he walks into this house looking around like, Goddamn, am I way over my head? This can be the biggest job I’ve ever done. Whatever it is that he’s doing. Even the sex, it’s so gluttonous [laughs]. Especially in episode 2. ‘Gluttony’ is the only word I can think of [to describe it]. He can’t believe he’s there. He comes off like such a loser. Those moments are the humanity that you find in a psychopath, the chink in his armor.
So that sex scene in episode 2…it’s garnering a lot of controversy—
Oh yeah. [laughs]
But how are we supposed to view that? Like, at one point in the series the characters are watching Basic Instinct, so it comes across as a nod to your influences, that you’re maybe trying to recapture that feeling of eroticism in cinema. But to hear you describe it now, we’re not supposed to find that scene in episode 2 overtly sexy?
No. There’s nothing sexy about it. When we use Basic Instinct as a reference, we’re using Verhoeven. Verhoeven is the king of ‘90s satire thriller—yes, there’s moments of “sexy” in his films but there are other moments that are very cheesy and hilarious. How ever you’re feeling watching that scene, whether it’s discomfort, or you feel gross, or you feel embarrassed for the characters. It’s all those emotions adding up to: This guy is in way over his head, this situation is one where he is not supposed to be here.
So it’s almost like he’s tossing those come-ons out off the top of his head then?
[laughs] Exactly.
Tone is a hard balance to strike in a new show—you’re teaching the viewer how to watch it with each episode. So what exactly are you guys trying to strike here? Is it satire, is it camp, a blend of both with some straightforward seriousness?
With this show, we love to play with the emotions. We’re puppet-mastering your feelings through the show. It’s never a consistent tone, and that’s on purpose. No matter how dark a scene is, you can find the comedy in it. That’s why we love actors like Rachel Sennot, Hank Azaria, and Da’Vine [Joy Randolph]. These are incredibly talented comedic performers who can shift the tone in just one monologue. I mean, Jane Adams in the opening of episode 2, she gives this monologue that is hilarious at first and then it just shifts into a powerhouse moment where you’re terrified of her. Like oh shit, this is somebody who cares but Jocelyn, but then, does she? Not to give away too much but especially in episode 3, we love to play with the comedy of it but then it’s like… don’t get too comfortable. That should be the logline for the show: Don’t get too comfortable watching this.
You talked about Tedros’s specific, sleazy look. Where did the idea for the rattail come from?
It was a culmination of a few ideas, but it’s hard to give anyone credit for it. You’ll find out more about the rattail later on.
Technically your acting debut was in Uncut Gems. Did you reach out to the Safdies as you prepared to take on your first real role?
I always looked at that as a cameo rather than an actual acting role. It’s making fun of The Weeknd and heightening the character, which as people get to know me more, I love to do a lot. That same year I wrote an episode of American Dad with Joel Hurwitz where “The Weeknd” comes out with a dark secret: that I’m actually a virgin. So those things were me making fun of the image of The Weeknd. And that’s kind of what we’re doing here as well.
With Idol, it’s a little trickier for me because I initially never wrote it with me in mind. That’s just the truth. But as the years went by, Sam [Levinson] convinced me and had some really great ideas for the show. And it got to a place where the only way I could play this role was if it’s something completely different from who I am. And I can distance myself from that character. I wanted to make sure he looked nothing like me, acted nothing like me, just a totally different person. The other thing that was really important for me was that I had to take off my filmmaker’s hat so I could hone in and focus on this being my job. And the only way that I could do that is if I fully give myself to this character. That was a challenge at first, because I’m very overprotective of what I do and I love to be in control. So it was really interesting to [for once] not be in control and give myself to that process. And it took a bit. But we finally got into it, and I’m excited for you guys to see how it unfolds.
Is there a specific scene that you’re excited for people to see you in the context of an actor?
Mmm, no. Just the whole thing.
You mentioned it as being a “five-hour film.” How has it been as you process people reacting to it in pieces, not knowing the full story and scope?
I wish I could react to it in real time as much as I’d like to, but the time difference is crazy. I’m getting the beginning of it when I’m half asleep. I try to see as much as possible the next day. But it’s tough because…I understand the internet. I started on the internet, my first song ever was on YouTube. I understand the internet a lot—and it’s tough to always be online because it’s so much. I love to put it out there, and take [the reactions] in—but I try not to obsess too much.