Madonna is shedding new light on why her much-discussed biopic ultimately failed to make it to the big screen.
Speaking in a wide-ranging interview with Interview magazine, the 67-year-old superstar said disagreements with Universal over the movie’s budget derailed the project.
‘We had a falling out, me and Universal, regarding budget because I needed—I’ve had an extraordinary life. I’ve had a huge life, so I needed a big budget,’ she explained.
‘They couldn’t get their heads around it. I found a way to make it for less money in Serbia, but I don’t think they were into the idea of—I don’t know. Maybe they just didn’t believe in me.’
The music legend later explored a new route with Netflix, aiming to rework her life story as a limited series. But she said that plan also became complicated because Universal still controlled the original screenplay she had developed for the film.
‘That was a whole other long process, because I couldn’t use the script I had with Universal unless I bought it from them for an extortionist’s price, even though I wrote it. Don’t ask,’ she said.
Madonna has opened up about why her biopic never reached cinemas, saying a budget dispute with Universal ultimately stopped the film from moving forward
Before the project stalled, Madonna had selected Weapons actress Julia Garner to portray her following an intense, bootcamp-style casting process.
The Material Girl has been persistent in her years-long effort to make a movie about her life.
In 2023 she worked on a biopic called Who’s That Girl, a nod to her 1987 film and song of the same name.
The film was initially developed with Diablo Cody on board as co-writer of the screenplay, which was then-titled Little Sparrow.
In 2024, Madonna then penned most of the film with screenwriter Erin Cressida Wilson, with Garner set to portray her.
However, a few months later she used social media to air out her frustration over the roadblocks that were holding up the project.
‘After struggling for days in LA, listening to producers and agents tell me why I couldn’t make my film, I realized that everything in my life is going to be challenged,’ she wrote.
The renowned performer noted she had ‘been working on it for 4 years,’ with people insisting that she should ‘downsize, down scale, think smaller.’
Speaking to Interview magazine, Madonna admitted that she wanted a large budget for the film and that the studio disagreed
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She also posed for a wild photoshoot in the magazine, transforming herself into a chain-smoking bombshell
The Queen of Pop is now working on a limited series about her life with Netflix
The lengthy caption continued, ‘No easy rides for me. I guess I should be grateful. It forces me to think outside the box. I did not have a normal life. I cannot make this in the normal way.’
Madonna is currently preparing to release her new studio album, Confessions II, on July 3.
The new album is the continuation of the iconic 2005 project Confessions on a Dance Floor.
Confessions II sees Madonna reunite with producer Stuart Price and also features a collaboration with Sabrina Carpenter.
Weapons actress Julia Garner is set to play Madonna in the upcoming series
To promote the project, the Queen of Pop transformed into a wild party girl for a shoot with Interview magazine.
She also spoke about pivoting back to music after her biopic was held up.
However, she also confirmed that Netflix has now found a writer for her limited series, indicating that the project will be back on once she’s finished promoting Confessions II.
Garner also confirmed that the series was still in the works, telling W Magazine last September, ‘I can’t say too much about it, but yes, it’s a work in progress.’
It comes after the big budget Michael Jackson biopic turned out to be a huge success at the box office.
Antoine Fuqua’s Michael, released in April, has already grossed $911million globally, and is predicted to hit the $1billion mark by the end of its run.
