A much-anticipated Madonna biopic, that the singer wanted to co-write and direct starring Ozark star Julia Garner, was unexpectedly scrapped earlier this week.
Universal Pictures announced the decision after the Queen Of Pop revealed she would be embarking on a 40th anniversary world tour.
Now, The U.S. Sun is reporting that the biopic, which was green-lit in 2020, was shelved due in part to her insistence on having ‘near-total’ control of the process on top of her bizarre ‘circus antics’ on social media.
Biopic drama: Just days after the announcement that Madonna’s much-anticipated biopic was scrapped, The U.S. Sun is reporting that the decision was made due in part to her insistence on having ‘near-total’ control of the project and her bizarre ‘circus antics’ on social media; she is pictured in NYC in September 2021
The Rebel Heart star’s controversial and bizarre posts on social media left studio executives ‘scratching their heads’, an insider told the publication.
‘Madonna did herself no favors by acting weird on social media during this entire process,’ the source continued.
‘She signed a contract to make this film and that should have been the signal to her to stop the circus antics, stop chasing likes, and just buckle down and get this movie into shape.’
While her edgy, and sometimes funny, posts often play well with her die-hard fans, they were reportedly off-putting to the bosses at Universal.
Shelved: The much-anticipated Madonna biopic starring Julia Garner (right) was scrapped, for now, in the wake of her announcement of a new 40th anniversary world tour
‘The studio bosses were watching what Madonna posted over these months where she was supposed to be writing and were left scratching their heads,’ the source explained.
The Express Yourself superstar’s social media controversies have included a racy video of herself in lingerie alongside a wholesome pic of her four youngest on Christmas Day,’ which some commenters found to be ‘uncomfortable’.
Among her other weird antics: a video showing her wearing a black lace balaclava while holding a riding crop in December; a clip showing her licking water out of a dog bowl after posing suggestively with bottles of sriracha and mustard; and lip-syncing to a rap about punching people in their ‘motherf***ing face’ with the caption: ‘Alright, wait, b**ch.’
The mother of six also left many people confused with a post in October where she appeared to come out as gay before making a ‘confession’ that she has never been circumcised.
And earlier in April, she dropped a video ahead of the Grammy Awards showing her with a weird ‘frozen face’ while dressed in a see-through top.
40th anniversary retrospective: The Celebration Tour ‘will take us on Madonna’s artistic journey through four decades and pays respect to the city of New York where her career in music began,’ according to a press release
Social media antics: Madonna’s recent social media controversies include posting a racy video of herself in lingerie alongside a wholesome pic of her four youngest on Christmas Day
Raunchy: The Express Yourself star also raised eyebrows with a video showing her wearing a black lace balaclava while holding a riding crop in December
Bizarre: Madonna’s social media antics also included her lip-syncing to a rap about punching people in their ‘motherf***ing face’ with the caption: ‘Alright, wait, b**ch’
It’s reported that executives at Universal didn’t like seeing the seemingly endless posts when she was supposed to be focused on writing and casting the biopic.
It’s been said that Garner, a 28-year-old Golden Globe and multi-Emmy Award winning actress, endured a grueling audition process to land the role over competition that reportedly included Euphoria actress Sydney Sweeney, 25, and Don’t Worry Darling star Florence Pugh, 27, among others.
The casting process has been described as a boot camp where actresses were drilled with grueling 11-hour choreography sessions and readings directed by Madonna, as well as further auditions where they had to sing in front of her.
Over the course of the past three years, Madonna (born Madonna Louise Ciccone), 64, has reportedly blown through multiple screenwriters, including Academy Award-winner Diablo Cody.
Redirecting focus: It appears executives at Universal didn’t like seeing all her social media performing when she should be focused on writing and casting the biopic
Material Girl: Madonna sported a diamond encrusted grill in abother bizarre video
Frozen face: The Rebel heart star dropped a video ahead of the Grammy Awards showing her with a weird ‘frozen face’ while dressed in a see-through top
But Cody, 44, would ultimately quit in April 2021 after finding Madonna too difficult to work with, The Sun reported at the time.
‘I have a very long script that is really hard for me to make shorter,’ Madonna admitted last summer. ‘I’ve been whittling away at it, but it’s like hacking off my limbs.’
Studio execs had hoped that Cody would be a stable and grounded hand at the wheel for the project, but in the end it was revealed that she was only going to commit to helping with the first draft of the script, due to her other projects and personal responsibilities as a mother.
‘It was an uphill battle after she left, even though Madonna insisted on doing more writing herself,’ that person with knowledge of the situation insisted, before revealing the singer-songwriter’s insistence on directing the biopic may have been one of the first breaking points.
Deleted: Madonna declared ‘I’ve never worn so many clothes in my life’, after Madonna was banned from Instagram Live for braking nude rules; this a a censored version of one of the photos that wee censored
Transformation: Madonna was scarcely recognizable in another racy offering that she uploaded to her Instagram page
Rumors of a new tour began to circulate earlier this month, which Madonna would end up confirming on her website and social media.
According to a press release, The Celebration Tour ‘will take us on Madonna’s artistic journey through four decades and pays respect to the city of New York where her career in music began.’
Initially, it capped out at a total of 35 shows in both North America and Europe, but in light of popular demand by fans, several more dates were added.
The Celebration Tour is currently scheduled to kick off at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver on July 15, and will run through 2023, concluding with a performance at the Kia Forum in Inglewood in Los Angeles on January 8 of next year.
Tour: Rumors of a new tour began to circulate earlier this month
The trek: The Celebration Tour is currently scheduled to kick off at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver on July 15, and go through until a couple of shows in LA in January 2024