People Love Jennie on The Idol More Than The Idol

The premiere of The Idol made one thing clear: a true pop star will always command attention. The new (and highly controversial) HBO series stars Lily-Rose Depp as Jocelyn, a struggling singer who is working to cement her place as a star. During the episode, we're privy to a tense dance rehearsal where Jocelyn tries to do just that. But when she can’t keep up, her backup dancer—Anys, played by BLACKPINK star Jennie—shows her how it’s done. The result was a minute and 45 seconds worth of gold, which seems to be nabbing more views than the actual show. Check it out:

Following the series premiere, a clip of Jennie's big scene made its way to YouTube, spurring thousands of comments that praise the K-pop star's performance. One person wrote, “Jennie's visuals, talent, & presence in the show was just incredible!” Another fan added, “She killed it, OMG!! She can do everything!” Variety reported that The Idol pulled in 913,000 viewers on its opening night, while Jennie's YouTube clip has racked up 2 million views and counting. Props to JENSETTERS, a JENNIE fan account, for pointing that one out. Sorry HBO, but you can’t beat superstardom.

To be fair, Jennie does have an advantage. She’s a pop star in her own right, with years of dance experience from touring with BLACKPINK—along with a loyal fanbase that would celebrate if she merely smiled at the camera. So is that it? Is it her innate charisma that stole the show or is she actually just that good? My money’s on both. Regardless, we're only one episode into The Idol, so there's plenty of time to see if Jennie continues to shine. If HBO plays its cards right, her character might boost ratings enough to make the series a true hit. While we wait to see what happens next, you can tune into The Idol every Sunday on Max.

From: Esquire US