Madonna Blames Universal Budget Fight for Biopic
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- Madonna told Interview magazine that a budget dispute with Universal Pictures killed her biopic, saying the studio 'couldn't get their heads around' the price tag for a film about her 'extraordinary' life.
- Universal Pictures won a multi-studio auction in 2021 to produce the film, with Madonna set to co-write and direct; she spent two years on the script and two more at Universal on budgeting and casting.
- Julia Garner won the role of Madonna in 2022 after a highly-publicized audition boot camp, with screenwriters Diablo Cody and Erin Cressida Wilson attached at various points.
- Madonna tried to relocate production to Serbia to lower costs, but said Universal balked, citing disbelief that she'd 'stay in Serbia more than four days.'
- After Universal fell through, Netflix reached out to develop a series instead, but Madonna said she couldn't reuse her Universal script without buying it back at 'an extortionist's price' and spent another 8-9 months searching for a showrunner.
- Shawn Levy's exclusive deal at Netflix is now developing the autobiographical series, though Garner is not attached to this version.
- The scrapped biopic will live on fictionally in The Studio Season 2 on Apple TV+, where Madonna and Garner filmed a story arc at the Venice Film Festival about a Garner-led Madonna biopic heading to its world premiere.
Why it matters: After roughly four years of development and a casting win for Julia Garner, Madonna's biopic concept shifted from a Universal feature to a still-unrealized Netflix series, leaving Garner's role in limbo. The idea survives — but only as a fictional plotline in Seth Rogen's Apple TV+ comedy.
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