Madonna Biopic Update: Julia Garner Set to Star, Madonna Will Direct, and More!

Julia Garner has been cast to play Madonna in the currently untitled Madonna biopic. The project, set to be directed by Madonna, has been in limbo for a while now. However, Garner is still hopeful that the film will move forward.

The movie’s status was updated on IMDB Pro on February 7. And it’s listed as being in “Turnaround”, which happens when an outside source takes over a film project. This can happen when a movie is in “development hell” at one studio, and the project gets transferred to another studio that is willing to invest further resources in order to push the project into pre-production.

Garner, 29, who is best known for her role as Ruth Langmore in Netflix’s Ozark, was asked about the project at the Vanity Fair Oscars party on Sunday night.

“Yeah, yeah. I don’t want to tell too much. I want to keep things… yeah, fingers crossed,” Garner said in an interview with Entertainment Tonight.

Currently, IMDB Pro lists Universal Studios as the production company and distributor for the movie.

Madonna Will Direct the Madonna Biopic

The project had ended up on the back-burner for a while with Madonna, 64, embarking on her “Celebration” world tour. However, she is still set to direct her own biopic – as she believes she’s the only person who can do justice to her story.

“I’ve had an extraordinary life, I must make an extraordinary film,” Madonna says. “It was also a pre-emptive strike. Because a lot of people were trying to make movies about me. Mostly misogynistic men. So, I put my foot in the door and said, ‘No one’s going to tell my story but me.’

“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.” she adds.

Previously, Madonna had opened up about how draining the experience of writing the script was. 

“Writing my script is the most draining, challenging experience I’ve ever had,” She confessed. “It’s kind of like psychotherapy in a way. Because I have to remember every detail from my childhood till now.”

“Remembering all the things that made me decide to be who I am, my journey as an artist, my decision to leave Michigan to go to New York, all the things that happened to me when I was young and naive, my relationships with my family and friends, watching many of my friends die,” she adds.

Diablo Cody and Erin Cressida Wilson are also listed as writers on the project, with Madonna and Amy Pascal producing.

No additional details are known at this time about the project. But we’ll keep you posted as more news on the Madonna biopic surfaces!