The new thriller film featuring The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, appears headed for a disappointing debut at the box office. Tesfaye, a four-time Grammy Award winner, has produced six No. 1 hits, including chart-toppers like “Can’t Feel My Face,””Starboy,””Save Your Tears,”and “Blinding Lights.”His track “Earned It,” from the Fifty Shades of Grey soundtrack, even earned him an Oscar nomination, although he ultimately lost to Sam Smith’s “Writing’s on the Wall”from Spectre.
In recent years, Tesfaye has ventured further into the realms of film and television. He made an appearance as himself in the 2019 thriller, Uncut Gems, starring Adam Sandler, and has lent his voice to characters in both The Simpsons and American Dad!, again portraying himself in the latter. Tesfaye’s most significant television project has been the HBO drama, The Idol, which he co-created alongside Sam Levinson and Reza Fahim. He starred opposite Lily-Rose Depp in the show, which, despite being cancelled after only five episodes, won an Emmy for Outstanding Choreography for Scripted Programming.
Hurry Up Tomorrow Faces a Lackluster Debut
The Weeknd in a Fictionalized Role
The Weeknd’s latest venture, Hurry Up Tomorrow, risks becoming a box office disappointment. This thriller, inspired by the artist’s album of the same title, features Tesfaye alongside stars Jenna Ortega and Barry Keoghan. The narrative involves a stylized, surreal nightmare that unfolds around a fictional version of Tesfaye. Ahead of its release, critics have largely dismissed the film, resulting in a disappointing Rotten Tomatoes score of just 13%. Released on the same weekend as Final Destination: Bloodlines—an anticipated horror sequel—Hurry Up Tomorrow may struggle to find its footing at the box office.
Final Destination: Bloodlines is projected to make approximately $46 million in its opening weekend, an impressive start for this longstanding horror franchise.
According to Deadline, Hurry Up Tomorrow is anticipated to generate between $3 to $3.6 million over its first three days at the domestic box office, landing it at approximately No. 6. Given its estimated production budget of $15 million, the film would only recover about a fifth of that amount during its opening weekend. To break even, films generally need to earn around two and a half times their budget, putting Hurry Up Tomorrow’s break-even point at a daunting $37.5 million—a goal that seems unlikely given its rocky start.
Implications for Hurry Up Tomorrow
Limits to Box Office Success
While audience responses to Hurry Up Tomorrow show a significant divergence from critical reviews—reflected in a Popcornmeter score of 72%—this enthusiasm may not translate into box office success. The film received a disappointing C- CinemaScore, suggesting a lukewarm reception from those in attendance. This contrasts sharply with Jenna Ortega’s previous project, Death of a Unicorn, which received a B- rating but still struggled, grossing a mere $16.1 million against a similar $15 million budget. Given the comparable budgets and the much stronger opening weekend of Unicorn at $5.8 million, the outlook for Tesfaye’s latest film appears quite bleak.
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