NEW MOVIE FROM THE WEEKND & TREY EDWARD SHULTS HAS "UNINTENTIONAL" NODS TO PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE & PERSONA
The Weeknd and Trey Edward Shults talked to Entertainment Weekly's Jessica Wang about their new movie Hurry Up Tomorrow, which opens in theaters, well, tomorrow:
The trailers have not given much away, leading online sleuths to form their own theories about how that on-stage moment in L.A., which Tesfaye has attributed to psychological factors like stress, plays into the narrative. That ambiguity is "very intentional," the singer-turned-actor told Entertainment Weekly in a CinemaCon sit-down with Ortega and director Trey Edward Shults, who, along with Reza Fahim, also co-wrote the script. "With me and Trey, we romanticize the idea of giving out a trailer that doesn't give away anything.""We never really see that anymore," Tesfaye added of that mystery. "It's always like these three-minute trailers that give out the whole plot because they want people to come to the theater. We trust the audience."
"I also think it's honest to the tone of the film," Shults added. "You can take everything at face value and go on an emotional ride with it, but also, if you want to read things in a deeper layer and infer a lot of stuff, it's pretty rich." In his own personal experience, "the least I know about films, the better," the filmmaker said. "So they can surprise me and I can interact with them."
Ortega, who also executive produces the film, did her best to tease what audiences can expect, calling it an emotional tale with themes of self-interrogation. "Speaking from Ani's perspective, she feels very neglected and unseen," Ortega said. "And she knows that she cares deeply about Abel more than anyone else ever could. It's frustrating when you feel like you're almost talking to a wall of somebody who's so unwilling to look at themselves in the mirror. And that's kind of what the film is about: the fear of having to deal with yourself and open up to yourself."
Expect nods, albeit unintentional ones, to the 1974 rock horror Phantom of the Paradise — about a disfigured composer who sells his soul — and the 1966 thriller Persona — about a famed stage actress who suddenly goes mute. "As things were evolving, we'd start connecting it to certain movies," Shults said.
"We weren't really [looking for] references for the film, it kind of just came to us," Tesfaye added.
Ultimately, Shults said, "the goal was to make something that feels fresh to us and different and unique."
Previously:
"Brian De Palma is a huge inspiration for all this" - The Weeknd talks about HBO's The Idol
Dressed To Kill - The Weeknd's current obsession
Updated: Thursday, May 15, 2025 7:56 AM CDT
Post Comment | Permalink | Share This Post