Yes, There’s a Reference to Britney Spears in Sam Levinson’s New HBO Series, SculptureAnd lily-rose depp plays a Britney-like character who wants to get up out of her funk, but as she Excitement “We’re not trying to tell a story about any particular pop star,” the creator said at the Cannes press conference today.
Levinson said, “It’s a lot of pressure—to be consistent, and to be what everybody wants you to be. It’s a lonely life.
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The producer said, “We can all pretend that everyone is looking out for somebody’s best interest, but I think fame really corrupts, it’s really easy to surround ourselves with myth makers who lead us on.” keep increasing.”
Levinson said that when he first saw all the news about the controversy Sculpture set, he knew he had the biggest hit of the summer. A Rolling Stone article detailed how the production was derailed with a poor working environment, last-minute script changes, and budgetary issues, with Levinson having to completely rework the nearly finished $54M-$75M project. included to begin with.
HBO released a statement in March that said, “The initial vision on the show and production of early episodes, unfortunately, did not meet HBO’s standards, so we decided to make changes. Throughout the process, the creative team has remained committed to creating a safe, collaborative and mutually respectful working environment, and over the past year the team made creative changes they felt were in the best interests of both the production and the cast and crew.
Sculpture Depp stars as Jocelyn, an overly-ambitious Britney Spears-esque protégé who has recently hit it big time in the dog-eat-dog world of showbiz. After a nervous breakdown derailed her previous tour, she’s determined to claim her rightful status as the greatest and sexiest pop star in America. She meets Abel “The Weekend” Tesfaye’s character Tedros, a nightclub impresario and ‘music manager’ with a troubled past. They hook-up BDSM-style and the album she’s on the fence with suddenly becomes an impromptu remix that night, filled with her sexual gasps (“Gimme More” from Hello? Britney, no. Too?). Meanwhile, Jocelyn’s team and manager (Hank Azaria) are highly suspicious of Tedros.
Levinson noted that the reference to Britney in the series was essentially a promotional spin on how Depp’s pop star could manage a situation.
Depp insisted, “We’re not telling someone else’s story.”
“I think what we wanted to do was make her feel like a pop star of our time, but one that is in her own plane,” the actress said, adding that influences were celebrities such as Sharon Stone. basic Instinct and Jeanne Moreau.
The Weeknd elaborated on the series’ concert: “We initially wanted to create a dark, twisted fairy tale with the music industry and everything I know about it and amplify it, and those movies from take inspiration from what both me and Sam love – it was really our love for music. That’s when I found out how much Sam is involved in music Excitement And working with him on the music on the show, that’s what unlocked it for us. Can we make our own popstar? Can we create someone who is trying to find herself, using my experiences, using my experiences, using Lily’s experiences, to create something special, daring and exciting and fun, that Will make people laugh, will make some people angry.
In regards to whether the Weeknd has met someone like his club owner-music manager character, “I don’t think so.”
“If you did, you wouldn’t be here,” Levinson said.
Guy’s weekend inspiration? “The first thing I can think of is Dracula.”
He said, “The shot of the gate as the door opened, I couldn’t tell if everyone in the theater was laughing.”
In preparing the character of The Weeknd, Levinson went through the pop star’s closet, going through what the musician calls “clothes that I would never wear.”
Added Levinson, “I thought what if this character had all the dreams that Abel has, all his vision of culture, how to tell a story through music and music videos – but no Not a talent. I can’t imagine how frustrating that must be for him. Not realizing it himself. It forces him to find a puppet to speak to. That’s when it started; that was the night the character was unlocked. I’m really excited to see where this show goes.”
Levinson said he first caught The Weeknd’s act in 2011 or ’12 at the Hollywood Bowl. He got to know the artist better when he accompanied him on a road trip to a Coachella performance years later, observing how the artist prepared for a show, listening to his set list in the car, and doing vocal lessons. The weekend was announced only weeks prior to the show. Levinson remembered The Weeknd telling him, “‘That’s not my audience'”. The crowd has been in the desert for three days, tired and ready to go home. “They’re not here to see me, but I’m going to win them over.” Excitement The producer noticed how the artist charmed the audience, acting completely different from what they had seen a decade earlier. “I thought, wow, if this is a career arc here; He is 32 or 33. This is the first task, ”said Levinson.
Detailing further inspirations for the weekend show, Levinson said, “If he can do that, if he can go from this shy kid behind the microphone to this superstar on stage – he’s got something that’s worth 100 billion.” There is one. There’s something about that drive, the ambition to win people over, to make them stop thinking about all the nonsense of life, the trials, the tribulations, the work; and give themselves over to the music.”
“That’s exactly when it clicked for me what this show is about,” said Levinson, “It’s about the ambition and drive to become a better artist.”
The HBO show screened the first two episodes last night at the Grand Théâtre Lumiere and received a five-minute standing ovation, highlighted by an emotional speech by Levinson, The series was co-produced by ExcitementLevinson and Tesfaye and Reza Faheem.
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