New 'Popstar' Trailer Proves The Lonely Island Guys Are Meant for the Big Screen

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, a tragicomedy about Conner4Real, who is portrayed by Andy Samberg with Oscar-level mastery, starring The Lonely Island.

May 18, 2016

Not Available Lead — Image via Complex Original
Complex Original

Andy Samberg is clearly Oscar-hungry. After changing the title of the long-awaited Lonely Island movie from the lengthy but ingenious Top Secret Untitled Lonely Island Movie to the equally lengthy and ingenious Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping, Samberg seems poised to take home any and all possible trophies with his portrayal of embattled singer-rapper Conner4Real.

Popstar, as Samberg's Bieber-esque physique in the fresh poster above clearly shows, centers on Conner4Real's struggle to regain his god-level status after his second album bombs. That premise alone means Samberg, alongside fellow lonesome islanders Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone, gets to craft a moving and subtle portrait of an artist on the cusp of possible obscurity. Just kidding. This shit is rated R, presumably for some very Lonely Island reasons.

"This one is actually on a much bigger scale," Samberg told Jimmy Kimmel in March when unveiling the movie's new title, comparing the production to his Jon Snow-assisted HBO mockumentary7 Days in Hell. "This is a full-on theatrical release movie that Judd Apatow is producing." In addition to the coveted Apatow co-sign, Popstar also boasts appearances from Sarah Silverman, Mike Birbiglia, Maya Rudolph, Tim Meadows, DJ Khaled, Simon Cowell, Usher, and many more.

"This is a real movie," Samberg promised. "We pitched other names to the studio, like I pitched them Gremlins 3 and they said 'No.'" Thankfully, Universal's missed Gremlins opportunity ultimately resulted in the Oscar bait of Popstar. Destiny is a beautiful, beautiful thing.

Popstar: Never Stop Never Stopping kicks off its promise of, um, never stopping June 3. Take the whole fam.