HBO's 'The Idol' is under fire yet again for a Jeffrey Epstein joke that viewers called 'absolutely sickening'

• HBO's controversial show "The Idol" came under fire on Sunday for a Jeffrey Epstein joke.
• A character says, "I'm fucking shitting more blood than a kid at Epstein's island," in the third episode.

"The Idol" may be losing viewers, but it's still generating plenty of headlines.

The controversial new HBO show, which was co-created by Abel "The Weeknd" Tesfaye and "Euphoria" director Sam Levinson, came under fire once again on Sunday night over a Jeffrey Epstein joke.

The scene in episode three — written by Levinson and Tesfaye — shows Andrew Finkelstein (Eli Roth) complaining to Chaim (Hank Azaria) about Jocelyn (Lily Rose-Depp), the struggling pop star they both depend on.

Finkelstein, a Live Nation representative, questions why Jocelyn hasn't canceled her upcoming stadium tour. He tells Chaim, Jocelyn's manager, that she's giving him irritable-bowel syndrome due to her lack of new music and recent bad press.

"I'm fucking shitting more blood than a kid at Epstein's island," he says.

The line is in reference to Little St. James, the private island that Epstein owned for decades. Locals referred to it as "Pedophile Island," and prosecutors said the convicted sex offender trafficked and abused dozens of young girls at the island for years. Epstein died by suicide in August 2019 while awaiting trial on charges of sex trafficking minors.

Some viewers of "The Idol" took to Twitter on Sunday night to express their disgust with the joke, with one person calling it "absolutely sickening" and another saying it was "one of the most disgusting thing [sic] I've ever heard on TV."

Controversy has followed "The Idol" since March, when a bombshell Rolling Stone report revealed original director Amy Seimetz had been pushed out. Sources said the show had turned into "torture porn" after Levinson and Tesfaye took over its creative direction.

Bad reviews followed after the show premiered in Cannes last month. Variety's Peter Debruge called the series — which shows Depp's character falling under the spell of Tesfaye, who plays an abusive nightclub owner — a "sordid male fantasy."

"Levinson's worldview seems corrupt," Debruge wrote in his review. "It shouldn't take degradation and suffering to make Jocelyn stronger. 'Euphoria' audiences won't be too surprised by the shameful way he treats Depp's character, as both she and the show appear trapped under The Weeknd's thumb."

Tesfaye defended "The Idol" after the second episode, which showed his character directing Jocelyn to perform various sex acts, was blasted by both viewers and critics.

"There's nothing sexy about it," Tesfaye told GQ. "However 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."

Tesfaye added of his character: "He's despicable, a psychopath — why sugar coat it?"