ACTRESS Julia Garner has said she still believes the long-shelved Madonna biopic could eventually make it to the screen, insisting that “the movie has to get made” despite the project’s uncertain future. The 32-year-old actress opened up about the biopic, which she was set to headline as Madonna. “I think the movie has to get made,” Garner said. “But we’ll see...” The project has had a long and comp l i c a t e d j o u r n e y. Universal P i c t u r e s s t o p p e d developi n g Madonna’s planned biopic in 2023, after itwent through multiple drafts, including scripts by Diablo Cody and Erin Cressida Wilson. Madonna had also been attached to direct the project. Madonna later explained that bringing her life story to the screen on the scale she envisioned required a substantial budget. “I’ve had an extraordinary life. I’ve had a huge life, so I needed a big budget. You know what I mean?” Madonna told Interview in June 2026. “I was supposed to make a movie about my life.

 

I worked on my script for two years and spent two years at Universal Studios with the line producers doing budgeting and casting,” she added. Garner’s association with the project dates back to 2022, when she was reported to be Madonna’s top choice to portray the pop icon. The actress had already begun extensive preparation for the role when, in January 2023, reports emerged that Universal was no longer developing the film. Despite the setback, Garner’s relationship with Madonna continued. In December 2023, the ‘Weapons’ star joined Madonna onstage during a tour stop in Brooklyn. In July 2025, Garner offered another indication that the project might still have a future when she said on a podcast that the movie was “supposed to still happen.” Madonna also later teased a script under the working title ‘Who’s That Girl’, referencing her 1987 film and its hit title track. While the biopic remains in limbo, Garner and Madonna recently found another opportunity to collaborate. The two appeared together in an episode of the second season of ‘The Studio’, with Garner playing a fictionalised version of herself alongside Madonna.