In this file photo The Weeknd performs during the Pepsi Super Bowl LV Halftime Show at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida. - AFP

Canadian singer The Weeknd will co-write, produce and star in a fiction series for HBO, the cable channel told AFP on Wednesday. The series will be titled "The Idol" and portrays the relationship between a female pop singer and the owner of a nightclub in Los Angeles, who turns out to be the leader of a secret cult.

The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, is developing the project with Sam Levinson, who notably directed the feature film "Malcolm & Marie" (2021) for Netflix and "Another Happy Day" (2011), which won an award at the Sundance Film Festival.

The 31-year-old singer is known for his very cinematic universe. His latest album, "After Hours," released in March 2020, was illustrated by concept videos loaded with references to well-known feature films, such as "After Hours" or "Chinatown." He has often been reported to have a passion for cinema, to the point of agreeing to play himself in the Safdie brothers' low-budget film "Uncut Gems" (2019), to critical acclaim.

Taken from "After Hours," the track "Blinding Lights" was the most listened to song on Spotify in 2020. The track spent 43 weeks in the top five for sales in the United States, shattering the previous record of 27 weeks held by the Chainsmokers and Ed Sheeran.-AFP