Super Bowl LV halftime show primer

theScore provides all the info for the Super Bowl LV halftime show ahead of the big game between the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

Who: The Weeknd

Where: Raymond James Stadium, Tampa

When: The Weeknd will likely take the stage shortly after 8 p.m. ET. Halftime shows typically last between 12 and 14 minutes.

How to watch: The halftime show will air and stream live on CBS and CBS All Access, respectively.

About the headliner

The Weeknd, whose real name is Abel Tesfaye, is a three-time Grammy Award-winning R&B superstar and one of the most popular artists in the world.

The Weeknd's performance will be the second curated by Jay-Z's Roc Nation after Jennifer Lopez and Shakira's show last year.

"We all grow up watching the world's biggest acts playing the Super Bowl and one can only dream of being in that position," The Weeknd said when he was announced as the halftime performer in November. "I'm humbled, honored, and ecstatic to be the center of that infamous stage this year."

He'll become the third Canadian to perform at the halftime of the Super Bowl following Shania Twain in 2003 and Dan Aykroyd in 1997.

What songs will The Weeknd perform?

Setlists for halftime shows are, naturally, kept as secret as possible.

But The Weeknd will likely perform and close the show with his biggest hit to date, "Blinding Lights," which was Billboard's No. 1 Hot 100 song of 2020. Other standouts from "After Hours," his fourth studio album, such as "In Your Eyes" and "Save Your Tears," along with past hits like "Starboy," are also good bets to be part of the show.

"He's got monster hits, and he really worked hard to make sure that they are presented in a way, in a Super Bowl halftime format, in a live way that's never been done before," Super Bowl executive producer Jesse Collins said in an interview with ET's Meredith B. Kile. "The keyword is 'live,' like, we didn't go pretape this ... It's all happening in that stadium, in that moment."

Is anyone else performing? David Crotty / Patrick McMullan / Getty

No other performers have been officially announced, but headliners usually have a surprise or two up their sleeves. The Weeknd has collaborated with the likes of Doja Cat, Kendrick Lamar, and Kenny G in recent years.

Ariana Grande has become the hottest name in the rumor mill after The Weeknd announced he was dropping his "The Highlights" album - which includes "Love Me Harder," featuring Grande - ahead of the Super Bowl.

"Yeah, maybe there will be cameos, but we can't say what he's doing," Collins teased. "It's definitely a very special show, you just got to watch and see what happens."

How will the show work amid the pandemic?

The Weeknd is apparently committed to making his halftime show an all-timer despite the constraints of the COVID-19 pandemic.

One of his managers, Sal Slaiby, told Billboard's Kate Bain that his client put up $7 million of his own money to "make this halftime show be what he envisioned."

"Well, due to COVID-19 and for the safety of the players and the workers, we kind of built this stage within the stadium," The Weeknd said in his preshow presser, per ET's Desiree Murphy. "We're also using the field as well, but we wanted to kind of do something that we've never done before."

"Yeah, so we built the stage and the stadium," he added. "But I'm not going to tell you anything else, because you have to watch on Sunday."

The Weeknd also teased that the Buccaneers' "iconic" pirate ship will be incorporated into the performance.

Do halftime performers get paid?

No, performers aren't compensated for taking on the Super Bowl halftime show, though the NFL covers production costs. But even though The Weeknd is investing an extra $7 million without getting paid, the publicity gained from being the halftime performer is more than worth it.

Lady Gaga, for example, received a sales bump of more than 1,000% after her Super Bowl show in 2017, per USA Today's Jayme Deerwester.

What will The Weeknd look like? Emma McIntyre /AMA2020 / Getty Images Entertainment / Getty

The Weeknd has adopted a visceral aesthetic to highlight the theme of his "After Hours" album.

He's donned a red suit, black shirt, and black tie ensemble at various award-show performances and altered his face with the help of makeup artists to reflect the "absurd" culture of Hollywood. He had a bloody nose and bruises all around his face at the VMAs and sported head bandages at multiple recent shows.

The Weeknd wants the theme to be part of the halftime show, though he said it will be toned down.

"I definitely want to be respectful to the viewers at home," he said at his presser, according to Kile. "I will still incorporate some of the storyline. It's a very cohesive story I've been telling throughout this era and throughout this year. The story will continue, but definitely will keep it PG for the families. I'll try my best."

"I don't like to spoon-feed the audience," he continued. "Hopefully, they can pick up some of their own theories and conclusions of what the show is saying and the story I'm telling from the performance."

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