The Starr

***The Starr*** is an American-British musical drama television miniseries created and written by Cooper Brandis and directed by Dexter Fletcher. It features an ensemble cast led by Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Taron Egerton, and Robert Pattinson. The five-part series premiered on HOOT from November 3, 2017 to December 1, 2017.

The series received positive reviews from critics, with praise for the acting (particularly Malek's performance), writing, cinematography, costume design and musical numbers. At the 71st Primetime Emmy Awards, it received nineteen nominations and won for Outstanding Limited Series, Outstanding Directing, and Outstanding Writing, with Malek, Egerton, and Boynton receiving acting wins. At the 77th Golden Globe Awards, the series won for Best Miniseries or Television Film and Malek won for Best Lead Actor in a Series, Miniseries or Television Film.

## Story

"*With his impeccable vocal abilities and mastering of the piano, Anthony Star achieves superstardom. However, amidst his skyrocketing success, he grapples with his ego, friends and a fatal illness.*"
—Official HOOT synopsis
Anthony Starr grows up in 1990s Britain, raised by his unaffectionate mother, Sona, and more loving father, Edward. Anthony is interested in music and hopes to perform for his father. Anthony begins piano lessons, making his way into the Royal Academy of Music. He develops an interest in rock music and performs in local pubs. As an adult, Anthony goes to a pub to see the band Smile. Anthony finds the lead singer Michael Bond and learns that the band has disbanded. After talking about their favourite artists and songs, they become friends and move into a flat to compose songs together. Anthony enters a romantic relationship with Michael's sister, Jan. While the pair perform gigs across Britain, Anthony urges him to think bigger and sell their van to finance a record album. As they work in a studio late at night, they impress a representative from Hollywood Records. The pair sign with the record studio under the management of Preston Campbell, but soon after, Michael's vocals are damaged in an attack, and he can no longer sing. Campbell sets up a performance for Anthony in Los Angeles, where he becomes nervous about performing alone in his debut, but the audience embraces his performance. Anthony is overjoyed by his success but feels abandoned when Michael leaves him alone at a party. ("The King of the Modern Age")

Anthony is nominated for three Grammy awards, winning the Best New Artist award. He suffers a panic attack perform a performance and uses cocaine to defuse the effects. Campbell's influence over Anthony launches a downward spiral into a life of debauchery while his career rises to new heights. Anthony develops a flamboyant stage persona and becomes one of the most successful artists of the 2010s, winning multiple awards and breaking records. During a performance, he proposes to Jan, and they are married that same day at a church. Anthony discovers that his father had died from heart attack and asks Campbell to cancel his tour so he can grieve. Campbell refuses, but as Anthony persists, he hits him. This results in him missing his father’s funeral, and his mother scolds him for not attending, calling him a failure and mistake. Struggling with parental issues as well as Campbell's increasing physical and emotional abuse, Anthony becomes addicted to alcohol, smoking, cocaine, cannabis, shopping, and sex to escape his pain and loneliness, with his mood swings and short temper beginning to alienate his friends. ("Broken Records")

This sentence has five words. Here are five more words. Five-word sentences are fine. But several together become monotonous. Listen to what is happening. The writing is getting boring. The sound of it drones. It’s like a stuck record. The ear demands some variety. Now listen. I vary the sentence length, and I create music. Music. The writing sings. It has a pleasant rhythm, a lilt, a harmony. I use short sentences. And I use sentences of medium length. And sometimes, when I am certain the reader is rested, I will engage him with a sentence of considerable length, a sentence that burns with energy and builds with all the impetus of a crescendo, the roll of the drums, the crash of the cymbals–sounds that say listen to this, it is important. ("Descent Into Madness")

Jan visits unexpectedly and urges Anthony to stop destroying his life and tells him to accept the offer to perform at the Super Bowl. Realizing that Campbell withheld news of the offer and has been a corrosive influence, Anthony fires him. In retaliation, Campbell goes public about Anthony's drug addictions. Despite his declining popularity and his numerous controversies, Anthony is announced as the performer for the Super Bowl LII halftime show. During a performance, Anthony collapses and is taken to the hospital, where he is told that he has developed inoperable lung cancer and has, at best, two years to live. Realizing his life is out of control, Anthony seeks help. He enters rehab and realizes he no longer needs support from his parents or Campbell. Anthony rekindles his friendship with Michael, who brings him new lyrics. Anthony is worried that he cannot perform or compose without alcohol or drugs but writes "I'm Still Here" and returns to a successful career. ("His Quiet World")

After the massive success of his newly released album, Anthony's popularity peaks again. On the day of the Super Bowl, Anthony reconnects with Jan and, after he tearfully apologizes to her for his behaviour, he invites her to attend. Despite her initial hesitancy, she decides to attend. Anthony is in top form at the Super Bowl, performing fan favourite songs and stunning the crowd. As critics describe his performance as one of the greatest of all time, Jan moves back in with Anthony. Anthony tells her about his lung cancer. Later, Campbell arrives at Anthony's home to await him; while waiting, Campbell confronts Jan and accuses her of nearly ruining Anthony's career and stating that Anthony will certainly relapse again. After months of chemotherapy, Anthony progressively becomes weaker and sickly. Anthony treats Jan at her favourite restaurant, and they see a movie. That night, he hangs himself in the garage. Jan, grief-stricken and inconsolable after Anthony's suicide, is visited by Michael, who tells her that the suicide was Anthony's own fault and not hers. The closing scenes reveal the contents of Anthony's suicide note, where he explains that despite knowing it was selfish, he decided to take his life because he could no longer do the thing he loves most, perform. He asks Jan to "live life to the fullest potential" and to find someone who treats her better. ("The Champion")

## Cast and Characters

### Main cast

* Rami Malek as Anthony Starr
* Lucy Boynton as Janet Bond-Starr
* Taron Egerton as Michael Bond
* Robert Pattinson as Preston Campbell

## Episodes

**Episode 1: "The King of the Modern Age"**
Directed by Dexter Fletcher
 Written by Cooper Brandis
February 23, 2020  •  64 minutes**Episode 2: "Broken Records"**
Directed by Dexter Fletcher
 Written by Cooper Brandis
February 24, 2020  •  58 minutes**Episode 3: "Descent Into Madness"**
Directed by Dexter Fletcher
 Written by Cooper Brandis
March 2, 2020  •  59 minutes**Episode 4: "His Quiet World"**
Directed by Dexter Fletcher
 Written by Cooper Brandis
March 9, 2020  •  60 minutes**Episode 5: "The Champion"**
Directed by Dexter Fletcher
 Written by Cooper Brandis
March 16, 2020  •  62 minutes