Charli XCX is joining Martin Scorsese's next film, What Happens at Night, in a cameo alongside Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence, according to Variety. The casting puts the Grammy-winning pop star in one of the most star-studded ensembles of the year, directed by one of cinema's most celebrated filmmakers.
A gothic story in a snowy town
What Happens at Night is a gothic psychological drama based on Peter Cameron's 2020 novel of the same name, with a screenplay by Patrick Marber. It follows an American married couple who travel to a small European town to adopt a baby, only to find themselves questioning everything they know about themselves as they struggle to bring the child home.
DiCaprio plays "The Man" and Lawrence plays "The Woman," with Mads Mikkelsen as Brother Emmanuel, plus Patricia Clarkson and Jared Harris in the ensemble. The couple check into an eerie, nearly deserted hotel, where they encounter a cast of peculiar guests, including a chanteuse, a businessman and a faith healer, as reality begins to blur.
Charli's growing screen career
Details of Charli's character have not been revealed, but the cameo continues a rapid expansion into film. In the past two years she has appeared in seven movies, including Erupcja, which she co-wrote and produced, 100 Nights of Hero, I Want Your Sex, The Gallerist and The Moment, the mockumentary about her own Brat era. She is also wrapping up a US tour leg for her latest album, Music, Fashion, Film, with a final show in Las Vegas before heading to Europe in February.
Charli and Scorsese are not strangers: the director appears on the cover of Music, Fashion, Film alongside musician John Cale and fashion designer Marc Jacobs, each representing one of the art forms in the title. Production on What Happens at Night, an Apple and StudioCanal production, has already wrapped, though Apple has yet to set a release date, with reports pointing to sometime in 2027.
Why this casting matters
The film is Scorsese's follow-up to his 2023 historical crime drama Killers of the Flower Moon, which starred DiCaprio and earned 10 Academy Award nominations including best picture. It also marks Scorsese's seventh collaboration with DiCaprio, after Gangs of New York, The Departed, Shutter Island, The Wolf of Wall Street and Killers of the Flower Moon. For Charli, who won three Grammy Awards in 2025 for Brat, a Scorsese credit is the most prestigious screen role of her acting career so far, even as a cameo.
Fans will have to wait for the release to see how big her moment on screen turns out to be, but the pairing of pop's most restless shape-shifter with Hollywood's most revered director is already one of the most talked-about castings of the year.
Watch: YouTube videos about Charli XCX joining Scorsese's What Happens at Night
Music in this post's reel: Kevin MacLeod - Silly Fun (incompetech.com), licensed under CC BY 3.0
Sources: People, Khaleej Times, The Times of India