“There’s some kinky-ass shit in this house,” says Destiny in the fourth episode of HBO’s “The Idol,” apparently playing the part of the series’ viewers. “This shit is weird, scary shit.”
As The Weeknd’s Tedros tightens his grip on Lily-Rose Depp’s Jocelyn — both figuratively and literally, with his hands around her waist in the studio — her managers, played by Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Hank Azaria, plot to make their rescue a troubled client from the predatory nightclub tycoon.
At the beginning of the episode, Destiny (Randolph) and Chaim (Azaria) go through Tedros’ criminal record, which is filled with allegations of violence and abuse. Oh, and his real name is Mauricio Costello Jackson.
So Destiny goes to the house to observe his streaming-era Manson family as Joss lays down vocal tracks with Mike Dean and plays himself. “I like not having to make decisions for myself… because I trust you,” Jocelyn tells Tedros, who gropes her from behind as she sings into the microphone, as the gang watches. To get a better voice out of Jocelyn, Tedros ties a scarf around her eyes and says he wants her to be “on the cusp.” He lifts her clothes and starts touching her as Jocelyn cums into the microphone.
In another room, possibly underage Chloe (Suzanna Son) sings a song to Destiny and tells her how Tedros saved her life: she was living on the street, addicted to heroin, when he took her in and gave her a place to sleep (which, before Jocelyn’s house, his nightclub). Destiny notices that Tedros collects twisted singers like Pokémon and offers some sage advice: “This company is a crazy, corrupt bastard. Don’t let anything… get in the way of your gift.”
Meanwhile, Tedros lurks in the shadows of Xander’s (Troye Sivan) room and listens to him sing in the shower. Tedros sneaks up on the creative director and shouts “Boo!”, before mocking him: “You looked like a little bitch… what did you think I was going to fuck you?” Tedros wants to know why Xander stopped singing – and he doesn’t believe the excuse that he tore his vocal cords. So Tedros puts the collar on Xander only to learn the truth – that Jocelyn’s abusive mother made him sign a contract not to sing professionally. Writhing in pain, Xander warns Tedros that Jocelyn “controls everything around her and everyone.” And now she’s doing it to you. Then he directs his words at Joss: “You’re more fucking disgusting, twisted, and depraved than your bitch of a mother.” After Jocelyn orders Tedros to keep shocking him, Xander retracts his statements, saying he lied, to stop the torture.
In a candid conversation with Destiny, Jocelyn acts as Tedros’ publicist, defending each of his crimes: “He was just trying to defend himself and then this girl…made it like he molested her.” In the next scene, Tedros wakes up Jocelyn with a great ticket selling idea: going public about the abuse she suffered. So the pop star livestreams herself crying and promises her fans “a new Jocelyn is coming.”
Elsewhere in the episode, Nikki (Jane Adams) offers Jocelyn’s backup dancer Dyanne (Jennie Kim) a record deal. After seeing her surpass Jocelyn in the music video shoot for “World Class Sinners,” the label wants Dyanne to take Jocelyn’s comeback song for herself. Later that night, Chloe accidentally reveals the truth to Jocelyn: that Tedros told Dyanne to take Jocelyn to the club, and that the three of them could be in a strange kind of love (or manipulation) triangle. When Dyanne comes to Joss’ house, she asks permission to steal “World Class Sinners” for her first single, and Jocelyn gives her blessing as she fights through her tears.
With a newfound distrust of Tedros, Jocelyn invites her ex-boyfriend Rob (Karl Glusman) to the house. As a drunken Tedros tries to intimidate Rob, he taunts, “You’re an actor, aren’t you?” Every actor I know is a fucking f—–.” It’s not long before Jocelyn is having sex with her ex as Tedros stands at the door listening, crying in front of a portrait of Prince.
As Rob leaves the house, Xander approaches him with a girl in a bikini, who claims to be a huge fan. Xander insists they take a picture together, and the girl straddles Rob, who is clearly uncomfortable with the whole ordeal. As he leaves, he asks Xander to delete the photo, but it will surely be used as ammunition. As we head into next week’s finals, it looks like Tedros’ army has gained another soldier.