Stand by me
Troye Sivan has a hangover. Nowhere is this in any respect evident; the 28-year-old singer, actor and social media star is the picture of fresh-faced and well-rested coherency, perched inside a hotel suite at the Cannes Film Festival. “How are ya?” greets Sivan, his Australian accent lathered on with a spoon. Next to him is Lily-Rose Depp, his co-star in a quiet, under-the-radar little television series called The Idol, the latest tale of debauchery from the team who unleashed Euphoria onto the world. (Depp is all cheekbones and the picture of elegance in a dream of a Chanel little black dress. “I'm a lifelong Chanel girl,” the longtime brand ambassador smiles.) When we speak, The Idol had premiered only the night before to a barrage of pearl-clutching headlines, courtesy of its subject matter: a pop star staging a comeback against a literal backdrop of sex, drugs and rock'n'roll. Depp plays the singer Jocelyn, Sivan her creative director Xander and Abel Tesfaye, aka The Weeknd, also The Idol 's co-creator, plays Tedros, a nefarious nightclub impresario whose relationship with Jocelyn rings alarm bells all over Tinseltown.
After the premiere came the afterparty. Hence the hangovers. “In the name of ,” deadpans the 24-year-old Depp, in her velvety California girl drawl. “Also, one more thing,” Sivan interjects, perking up. “I party, but I work really hard, and I think I don't often mix the two, but in honour of this show and what we created, it only felt right to be pretty was created by HBO, the arbiters of televisual cool, the kick-on did have, Sivan admits, a “corporate Christmas party vibe”. “Where, like, you don't wanna be wasted in front of your boss,” Sivan jokes. “But in this particular case, The Weeknd is my boss. So, he wanted me to have a good time.”
