He’s one of the biggest artists in the world with countless awards and honors under his belt, including the record for the most streamed song on Spotify ever. But now, The Weeknd is switching things up. He’s taking his talents from the stage to the big screen in his first feature film called, “Hurry Up Tomorrow.”
You know him as The Weeknd, but in the new musical thriller, “Hurry Up Tomorrow,” you’re about to get to know him as Abel.
The Weeknd: “Cinema’s always kind of, for me, it’s always kind of been my number one passion. And then, I happened to sing and make music and it kind of felt like a little detour, a little cheat code, to kind of get into this. “
The film is a companion piece to the singer’s latest album of the same name and, in it, he plays a fictionalized version of himself.
The Weeknd: “I always wanted to make movies, and I always wanted to make music with movies. It’s always just been a part of me.”
The movie version of The Weeknd is an insomniac on the verge of a mental breakdown, but his world gets rocked when he meets Jenna Ortega’s character. She jumped at the chance to be part of this project and work with him.
Jenna Ortega: “That’s a true artist and that’s somebody who I want to learn from and I want to watch. And I was eager to have this experience.”
“Hurry Up Tomorrow” is a really personal project for The Weeknd because it was inspired by the moment that he lost his voice mid-performance three years ago.
The Weeknd: “I was juggling a million things at the time, you know, and I was on tour, dealing with personal stuff, as well, too. And it got a point where, ‘oh my god, I can’t give them what they want, my voice is failing me.’ And I knew at that moment, I needed to sit down and figure out what was going on up there.”
Jenna said his willingness to explore those feelings really made an impact on her.
Jenna Ortega: “I just had the most incredible time watching him, you know, be so vulnerable in this job. And to be in those scenes with him and to get to be honest with him was very exciting. I remember at the time of shooting this, it was a very surreal time.”
It’s a new chapter, but what does it all mean for “The Weeknd” moniker?
The Weeknd: “I’ve said everything I can say as this person. And now it’s time for me to take that next step and this film was kind of like that guiding light for me.”