First look at Noomi Rapace as opera legend Maria Callas: Cannes 2015

Before she continues her search for gods/aliens in Prometheus 2, Noomi Rapace will play renowned opera singer Maria Callas in imaginatively-titled biopic, Callas, which is being shopped to distributors at the 2015 Cannes Film Festival.

Niki Caro (Whale Rider, North County) is on writing and directing duties. She’ll have plenty of material to draw on, as Callas’ life was known for it’s tendency to be as dramatically heightened on and off the stage, but the film will focus on her two-decade love affair with Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis (yet to be cast).

While Rapace is committed to the ongoing Prometheus franchise and has appeared in some hefty dramas of late (The Drop, Child 44), she hasn’t yet landed a role with the impact to match her breakout turn as Lisbeth Salander in the Swedish version of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo and its sequels.

With biopics known for their awards-magnet potential, maybe this’ll be the role to show off her dramatic chops again. Check out the first look poster - with Rapace channelling a classic Callas pose - below. Expect to hear much more on the film if it gets snapped up in Cannes.

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Matt Maytum
Editor, Total Film

I'm the Editor at Total Film magazine, overseeing the running of the mag, and generally obsessing over all things Nolan, Kubrick and Pixar. Over the past decade I've worked in various roles for TF online and in print, including at GamesRadar+, and you can often hear me nattering on the Inside Total Film podcast. Bucket-list-ticking career highlights have included reporting from the set of Tenet and Avengers: Infinity War, as well as covering Comic-Con, TIFF and the Sundance Film Festival.