Spoilers for The Idol ahead.
It's been on UK screens for little more than a week, and The Idol has sure got us talking.
Since its screening at Cannes Film Festival, in fact, the TV show – starring Lily-Rose Depp and The Weeknd and created by Euphoria's Sam Levinson – has been hit with criticisms of its sexualisation of women's bodies and bad sex scenes.
And yet. There might still be a reason to persist with what is undoubtedly one of the most divisive entertainment releases of the year so far. Interestingly, after the airing of the The Idol's second episode, fans are pointing to the standout performance of Jennie Ruby Jane (Blackpink's Jennie Kim) – who plays Dyanne, Lily-Rose's pop star Jocelyn's back up dancer and apparent friend.
Sam Levinson and Abel Tesfaye are the not-so-masterful minds behind it, and they should be the ones held accountable.
We saw something of a twist in the second episode, as suggestions that Dyanne could be just as much of an antagonist – or at least a 10/10 drama deliverer – to Jocelyn as The Weeknd's character, night club owner Tedros.
Nothing seems completely clear yet, but it seems that Dyanne is a part of whatever Tedros' plan for Dyanne is, and whether it involves the cult he seems to lead. So why is she pretending to be her friend? We are obsessed with her motives here.
We all love a good U turn, and while we were led to believe that Dyanne was only looking out for Jocelyn's best interests, it looks like she could be the one responsible for her downfall. Juicy.
Some have theorised that Dyanne is acting as one of many agents put in place to undermine Jocelyn's worth, making her more vulnerable and therefore open to Tedros' wider plan. Or perhaps it's as simple as the fact that Dyanne is looking to replace Jocelyn as lead singer, after her talents were noticed by Nikki Katz (Jane Adams).
This may mean that Dyanne may get a chance to overthrow Jocelyn quicker than expected, especially if she is offered opportunities at a record label.
Either way, the villain era energy for Dyanne has captured our interest, particularly due to the fact that Jennie Ruby Jane played it all so compellingly. Plus, it's always interesting – and feels uncommon – to see a woman afforded the opportunity to play a character with nuance: good and bad intentions combined.
Her turn on The Idol is Jennie's acting debut, and it sounds like she walked straight on to set and smashed it.
“It was an opportunity to just be myself and be brave. I didn’t really train for it, or prep anything,” she told WWD of her acting process. “[Creator] Sam [Levinson] wanted me to just be myself.
Fans have flocked to Twitter to commend Jennie for her performance as Dyanne, particularly her villain energy.
One tweeted: “I definitely didn't expect to see Jennie playing a villain in the show. But I love it #The Idol”, while another pointed out Jennie's way of “stealing the spotlight every time she comes on screen”. Perfection. Another posted: “Everyone agreeing that jennie is the only reason why people watch the idol”.
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While the wider TV show has been dubbed problematic by many due to its misogynistic plotlines, the focus of the criticism has mostly been levelled at the show's creators for positioning it through such a lens that encourages sexualisation of women's bodies and envisages disturbing, decidedly-not-hot sex scenes.
Lily-Rose Depp, on the other hand, has been praised widely for her performance, just like Jennie has been.
We can't wait to see what the delightfully wild women of The Idol do next.
