"A lot of what happened in the film really happened to me": The Weeknd opens up about upcoming film "Hurry Up Tomorrow"

Abel Makkonen Tesfaye, also known by his stage name, The Weeknd, is a jack of all trades. Recently, the four-time Grammy winner released his sixth studio album, titled Hurry Up Tomorrow, on January 31, 2025. Now, his movie with the same name will premiere worldwide on May 16, 2025, by Lionsgate. The movie falls under the genre of musical psychological thriller film and is directed and produced by Abel himself.

While The Weeknd has a major part in the film, other famous faces you can expect to see are Jenna Ortega, Riley Keough, and Barry Keoghan. All the other actors will be playing fictional characters, while Abel will play himself in the musical thriller.

During an interview with ET, Rachel Smith asked The Weeknd what makes his upcoming movie a "passion project" and why he kept it on the down low. Abel replied,

"Well, it's a passion project cause it is really personal, you know. A lot of what happened in the film really happened to me. Um... secretive? You know, I've always been kind of secretive with my work, wether it's the music... whatever. I just, I love people to experience it when it's out, not know too much about it. Kinda go in blindfolded, and you know, get the 110% experience."

The Weeknd shares more details behind making Hurry Up Now (film)

Rachel Smith began the exclusive interview with The Weeknd by talking about his outfit and his "movie-star smile." She listed the Starboy singer's list of accomplishments in 2025, which included a new and eponymous album, a stadium tour, and an upcoming movie. Abel helped to co-write, produce, and edit Hurry Up Now. She asked him to describe how he is feeling at the moment. To this, The Weeknd responded:

"A little nerve-wracking. I mean you've been living with something for so long, you finally put it out for the world. It's just not yours anymore at that point, right?"

Smith responds by saying:

"The Weeknd, nervous?"

And the star smoothly replies:

"Always. Before every concert... I'm always nervous. Yeah, you're putting yourself out there. You gotta be nervous. And if you're not nervous, you're not gonna care anymore, and that's a no, no."

Smith then proceeds to ask if the audience is going to see a piece of the real Abel in the film, since he mentioned a few of the things actually happened in real life. Tesfaye chuckled and said:

"I don't know... I mean, well, it's a piece of everybody. I was saying earlier that it's one giant therapy session. So, even though it's loosely based on something that happened, everybody brought their own story to it. Trey, it's his story. Jenna brought herself to it, Barry brought himself to it. So, it feels like... it's all of ours."

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Hurry Up Now is not just another project for Abel to add to his accomplishments, but it is deeply personal for him, as it is a story that belongs to everyone who has worked on it. The official premiere of the film by Lionsgate is on May 16, 2025.

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