Charli XCX Makes Acting Debut In 'Overcompensating' Trailer

Charli XCX’s acting era has officially begun. After dominating the music world with Brat in 2024, the hyperpop superstar has been notably shifting her focus to the big screen. She’s been cast in seven major motion pictures since the fall — which is especially surprising since Charli has yet to seriously show off her acting chops (unless you count her voice role in The Angry Birds Movie).

Now, she’s giving the Angels — and everyone else, for that matter — a first taste of her dramatic talents with her acting debut in Overcompensating. The upcoming comedy series was created by and stars Charli’s friend Benito Skinner, telling the semiautobiographical story of a closeted former football star who struggles to hide his sexual orientation as he begins college.

Along with producing the show’s soundtrack, Charli also has a guest role in Overcompensating. And the first trailer seems to confirm that the pop star will be playing a particularly bratty version of herself.

“You think I want to play f*cking ‘Boom Clap’ in a f*cking college!? Are you joking!?” Charli’s character screams at an event organizer at the end of the show’s first trailer.

The line feels like an in-joke for Charli’s superfans, nodding to the singer’s mid-2010s mainstream era that she’s famously been vocally critical of in the years since.

Skinner’s boyfriend Terry O’Connor (who worked closely with Charli in her marketing campaign for Brat) told the story of how the singer became a part of the new show. “We went to this party [in 2020]. And then, Charli turned around at the bar,” O’Connor told Elite Daily. “Ben really had his eyes set on her to do the music for his show. He immediately pitched it to her, and she was like, ‘Cool. Yeah. Send me the script.’ From there, we just became friends.”

Overcompensating will premiere May 15 on Prime Video.