Madonna biopic starring Julia Garner canceled at Universal Pictures

(Image credit: Netflix)

The highly anticipated Madonna biopic starring Ozark's Julia Garner has officially been scrapped.

According to Variety, the film, set to be directed by Madonna, is no longer in development at Universal Pictures. Per the publication, Madonna's focus now lies solely on her sold-out world tour, but plans to make a film about her life "one day."

Garner was cast as the queen of pop herself back in June after a grueling audition process that involved several other Hollywood performers. The audition process reportedly included up to 11 hours a day of choreography sessions with Madonna's choreographer and Madonna herself, as well as singing auditions. Florence Pugh, Alexa Demie, and Odessa Young were all up for the part.

Madonna initially co-wrote the screenplay, under the working title "Little Sparrow," with Juno and Jennifer's Body writer Diablo Cody, before Cody eventually left the project and was replaced by The Girl on the Train scribe Erin Cressida Wilson. An authorized made-for-TV biopic titled Madonna: Innocence Lost, based on the book Madonna: Unauthorized, premiered in November 1994 and starred Terumi Matthews as the pop star.

Garner won three Primetime Emmy Awards and a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Ruth Langmore in Ozark. She also received Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for her portrayal of New York City scam artist Anna Delvey aka Anna Sorokin in Netflix's Inventing Anna.

Lauren Milici is a Senior Entertainment Writer for GamesRadar+ based in New York City. She previously reported on breaking news for The Independent's Indy100 and created TV and film listicles for Ranker. Her work has been published in Fandom, Nerdist, Paste Magazine, Vulture, PopSugar, Fangoria, and more.