Here's everything we know about the Madonna film

“No one’s going to tell my story but me,” The Queen of Reinvention directed her life, and now she’s set to direct her biopic. 

“No one’s going to tell my story but me,” The Queen of Reinvention directed her life, and now she’s set to direct her biopic.

 

We’re living through a golden age of music biopics. Following the enormous success of the Queen film Bohemian Rhapsody, Elton John’s Rocketman, and Baz Luhrmann’s ELVIS, it’s no surprise the Hollywood machine has its sights set on playing out the lives of legacy acts on the silver screen.

Mötley Crue and David Bowie got their dues. On the way is a Bradley Cooper-helmed biography on legendary composer Leonard Bernstein is on its way, a Bob Dylan film starring Timotheé Chalamet, and a Robbie Williams biopic. 

Bradley Cooper in new film Maestro. Picture: Netflix

Though the film we’re anticipating the most (albeit, with a little trepidation), is the as-yet-unnamed Madonna biopic. Directed by the Queen of Pop herself.

In 2020, Universal Pictures confirmed that a film about Madonna was in the works.

“I want to convey the incredible journey that life has taken me on as an artist, a musician, a dancer – a human being, trying to make her way in this world,” the musician said in a press.

“It’s essential to share the roller coaster ride of my life with my voice and vision.”

So, whilst we wait, here’s everything we know about the film so far.

Who is behind the project?

Amy Pascal (The Post) will co-direct the film alongside Madonna. 

The script was initially written with Diablo Cody (Jennifer’s Body, Juno), who has since left the project. Screenwriter Erin Cressida Wilson (The Girl on the Train, Chloe) has since joined the production. 

“I have a very long script that is really hard for me to make shorter. I’ve been whittling away at it, but it’s like hacking off my limbs,” Madonna told Variety. 

She was firm about her decision to take on the directorial reigns, telling Variety  “It was also a preemptive strike because a lot of people were trying to make movies about me,” she said. “Mostly misogynistic men. So I put my foot in the door and said, ‘No one’s going to tell my story, but me.’”

Is this Madonna’s directorial debut?

No, Madonna has previously directed two films. 2008’s Filth and Wisdom, and, unusually, a 2011 biopic on Wallis Simpson, who married King Edward, W.E. Both films were critical failures (Roger Ebert described the former as “deeply non-caring”, and the latter as "relentlessly monotonous.”)

Who will star in the movie?

Emmy-winning actress Julia Garner (Ozark, Inventing Anna, The Assistant) has been pinned to play Madonna, although she’s yet to officially sign on. 

Julia Garner is slated to play Madonna in the forthcoming biopic. Photo: Getty.

According to insiders, contenders for the role were subject to a grueling ‘Madonna Boot Camp’. Which consisted of 11-hour dance sessions with the pop stars choreographer, and further choreography, readings, and singing lessons with Madonna herself.

Florence Pugh, the whole Euphoria gang (Alexa Demi, Barbie Ferreira, and Sydney Sweeney), Australia’s Odessa Young, and musicians Bebe Rexha and Sky Ferreira (who has previously starred in Baby Driver and Twin Peaks: The Return) all reportedly auditioned for the film. 

It’s been rumoured that our lady of low-rise, Julia Fox, has been eyed for a supporting role in the film, per Entertainment Weekly, the Uncut Gems star may portray actress Debi Mazar – one of Madonna’s close confidants.

What is it about?

Details about the project have been kept firmly under wraps. It has been confirmed that the current version of the script concludes with Madonna’s seminal 1990 Blonde Ambition World Tour, which cemented her status as an enduring pop culture icon.

Madonna wearing the Jean Paul Gaultier conical bra corset on her Blonde Ambition Tour. Photo by Frans Schellekens/Getty.

Is this the first Madonna biopic?

It’s hard to believe, but this is the first time the ballsy, provocative life of one of pop’s greatest icons has been adapted for the silver screen. 

That’s not to say others haven’t tried (and failed). There were whispers of a possible biopic in 2017. The Hollywood Reporter announced that Universal had picked up a script called, Blond Ambition, that chronicled Madonna’s rise to fame following her move to New York in the 1980s. Michael De Luca (Fifty Shades of Grey) and Brett Ratner (War Dogs) were slated to produce. 

On numerous occasions, Madonna has voiced her disdain for the project.  “Nobody knows what I know and what I have seen. Only I can tell my story,” she wrote in an Instagram post.

“The reason I’m doing it is because a bunch of people have tried to write movies about me, but they’re always men."

-Madonna said in October last year, during an appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. 

“I read that Universal was doing a script… they wanted my blessing, and I read it. It was the most hideous, superficial crap I’ve ever read. This has happened a couple of times. So, finally, I just threw down the gauntlet.”

When will it be released?

An official release date is yet to be confirmed.