Florence Pugh and Julia Garner are amongst the stars still in the running to play Madonna in a new biopic, as auditions for the movie continue.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, others in the running include Alexa Demie (Euphoria), Odessa Young (Mothering Sunday), and Emma Laird (Mayor of Kingstown), while musicians including Bebe Rexha and Sky Ferreira have also reportedly been part of the search.
The audition process has been described as "grueling", with up to 11 hours a day of choreography sessions with Madonna's choreographer and Madonna herself as well as singing auditions. The role requires a triple threat, with sources telling THR: "You have to be able to do everything."
The currently untitled movie reportedly ends with the singer's 1990 Blonde Ambition tour, but this may change as the script is still being developed. Madonna initially co-wrote the screenplay with Juno scribe Diablo Cody, but Cody has since left the project and been replaced by Erin Cressida Wilson whose credits include The Girl on the Train.
Spider-Man producer Amy Pascal is on board to produce, while Madonna herself is directing. While it's been common in recent years for artists to have a role behind the scenes of their big-screen biopics, like Elton John executive producing 2019's Rocketman, this is a new level of involvement. "The reason I’m doing it is because a bunch of people have tried to write movies about me, but they’re always men," Madonna told The Tonight Show last year.
