The Weeknd‘s new movie — starring Jenna Ortega, Barry Keoghan, and himself — will be released later this year, according to a report from HotNewHipHop. An update on the movie’s IMDB page shows that The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, will also be a co-writer, along with director Trey Edward Shults and Reza Fahim.
Not a whole lot is known about the upcoming movie, like a plot or even a title, but the film marks Shults’ first since 2019’s Waves.
The movie was first announced last year via Deadline, with Shults and Ortega tapped as executive producers.
This will mark The Weeknd’s first starring role as a character, after briefly playing a fictional version of himself in 2019’s Uncut Gems. Last year, he also starred as a club owner and cult leader named Tedros in HBO’s controversial series, The Idol.
While The Weeknd’s acting has left fans divided, viewers can likely look forward to seeing him in more projects. In an interview with W Magazine, he shared that his upcoming album will likely be his last under the stage name.
“I’m going through a cathartic path right now,” he said. “It’s getting to a place and a time where I’m getting ready to close the Weeknd chapter. I’ll still make music, maybe as Abel, maybe as The Weeknd. But I still want to kill the Weeknd. And I will. Eventually. I’m definitely trying to shed that skin and be reborn.”
