Madonna Is No Longer Directing a Madonna Biopic

For Madonna fans, there is good news and bad news. The good news is the iconic pop star is about to embark on a major world tour. The bad news is with her attention on the tour, she will not be directing a much-discussed biopic about her own life.

News of Madonna’s Madonna biopic, which would have starred Julia Garner in the lead role, first broke in September 2020. At the time, here was what Madonna herself had to say about the film she wanted to make:

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 focus of this film will always be music.  Music has kept me going and art has kept me alive.  There are so many untold and inspiring stories and who better to tell it than me.  It’s essential to share the roller coaster ride of my life with my voice and vision.

According to Variety, Madonna “worked on two script drafts encompassing large periods of her creative and personal life.” Universal, which would have distributed the project, had previously bought the rights to a Black List script by Elyse Hollander about Madonna titled Blonde Ambition back in 2017. After Madonna got involved, she worked on the material with Juno’s Diablo Cody and Secretary’s Erin Cressida Wilson. But two years after the project was announced, it still has not gone into production.

Variety quotes unnamed “insiders” who claim that while the tour is Madonna’s “sole focus” right now she “remains committed to making a film about her life one day.”