Julia Garner, celebrated for her Emmy-winning performance in Ozark, has officially confirmed she is set to portray Madonna in the long-anticipated biopic about the pop icon—a project that has evolved considerably but is now firmly back on track as of early September 2025.
In a recent interview with W Magazine, published on September 3, 2025, Garner stated, “I can’t say too much about it, but yes, it’s a work in progress” when asked about the biopic’s status, signaling that the project remains alive after earlier uncertainty (source, source).
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First attached to the role in 2022, Garner’s involvement emerged following a grueling “Madonna boot camp” audition, where she had to learn dance and vocal elements to impress the legendary singer herself (source, source). She recalled that, although she isn’t a trained dancer, she went in full-force—dance training, singing, and all—to audition directly in front of Madonna, channeling the mantra, “What would Madonna do?” (source, source). The bold mindset paid off; Garner said, “I owned it,” adding, “You can take it or leave it…” (source, source).
Despite the project being shelved by Universal Pictures in early 2023 as Madonna focused on her Celebration world tour, the actress and pop superstar remained in contact. Garner even made a memorable onstage appearance during the tour’s Vogue-themed segment in Brooklyn (source, source).
Madonna, for her part, has continued to work on the project, revealing in July 2024 her involvement in rewriting and refining its screenplay—using the working title Who’s That Girl, a nod to her 1987 film (source, source).
More recently, the biopic concept appears to have shifted from a theatrical feature to a Netflix limited series, with acclaimed director Shawn Levy (known for Stranger Things and Deadpool & Wolverine) now involved in bringing Madonna’s story to life (source, source, source).
Details on the storyline remain sparse, but Entertainment Weekly reports that the narrative is poised to chronicle Madonna’s rise—from her early days in New York, the breakthrough of Like a Prayer, her role in Evita, to the influence of Harlem’s ballroom scene on her artistry (source).
In sum, Julia Garner’s confirmation this September 2025 cements her continued involvement in a biographical project that, despite production delays and format changes, is very much alive.