Madonna officially scrapped her self-directed Universal Pictures biopic after a budget dispute.
Universal rejected Madonna's proposal to film in Serbia to lower production costs.
The singer is now collaborating with director Shawn Levy for a Netflix series.
Madonna Reveals Why Her Biopic With Universal Pictures Was Scrapped
Madonna has revealed why her highly anticipated Universal Pictures biopic was scrapped after a budget dispute, as she transitions the project to a Netflix series.
Summary
Madonna was supposed to co-write and direct her biopic, which was first announced in 2020. The 'Queen of Pop' has revealed that her highly anticipated biopic is officially scrapped following a budget dispute with Universal Pictures. The pop-star opened up about the dispute regarding the project during an interview with Interview magazine, confirming she and the studio had a disagreement on financial terms.
The project was stalled during pre-production.
Why Madonna's biopic got shelved
"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. 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. You know what I mean?" Madonna told the magazine.
The Grammy award-winning singer revealed that Universal Pictures "couldn't get their heads around" the whopping budget needed for her biopic. To keep the project going, she proposed relocating the production to Serbia to lower costs. But the studio rejected the proposal, expressing doubt about her commitment to filming in Eastern Europe.
"Maybe they just didn’t believe in me. One of their first reactions was, ‘We don’t believe you’d stay in Serbia more than four days.’ And I said, ‘Did you read the script?’ My whole life has been survival. I’m not going there for a holiday," the singer said.
Following the fallout, she was in 'limbo' and then Netflix reached out to her to make a series. "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. That’s just the way it goes," Madonna added.
Madonna's biopic history
Universal Pictures was supposed to produce the film, with screenwriters Diablo Cody and Erin Cressida Wilson on board, and actor Julia Garner was cast to play the singer.
But after it got scrapped, in April, Madonna and Garner filmed a parody of the cancelled film in Venice for season two of Apple TV's The Studio.
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In 2025, Deadline reported that Madonna is partnering with Shawn Levy to develop a limited bioseries for Netflix. Garner is not part of the it.
Madonna's upcoming projects
The 67-year-old is currently focusing on her 15th studio album, "Confessions II," which is releasing on July 3.
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