Summary

  • Angelina Jolie shines in first-look images as legendary opera singer Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín's biopic Maria.
  • Larraín's previous biopics, Jackie and Spencer, earned Oscar nods, setting high expectations for Maria and Jolie's performance.
  • Maria will delve into the controversial life of Callas, the greatest opera singer of all time, providing Jolie with a potential comeback role.

Angelina Jolie transforms into a legendary singer in first-look images from Pablo Larraín’s next biopic, Maria. The Chilean filmmaker is known for directing 2016's Jackie and 2021's Spencer, two biopics that chronicled the lives of iconic women, Jackie Kennedy and Princess Diana, and earned their respective stars, Natalie Portman and Kristen Stewart, Academy Award nominations for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role. Larraín’s next biopic, which is titled Maria, will focus on the legendary opera singer Maria Callas and star Angelina Jolie, who hasn't appeared on-screen since 2021's Eternals.

Today, the first look at Angelina Jolie as Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín’s next biopic was revealed via Variety. Check out the images below:

The images reveal the first look at Jolie in costume as Maria Callas in Larraín’s biopic, which is an independent production that reached an interim agreement with SAG-AFTRA to film over the following weeks in Paris, Greece, Budapest, and Milan during the actors' strike. The script, which was co-written by Larraín and Steven Knight, was completed prior to the WGA strike. Larraín said the following in a statement:

I am incredibly excited to start production on Maria,’which I hope will bring Maria Callas’ remarkable life and work to audiences all around the world, thanks to the magnificent script by Steven Knight, the work of the entire cast and crew, and especially, Angelina’s brilliant work and extraordinary preparation.

What To Expect From Maria

Angelina Jolie as Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín’s Maria

Maria Callas, an American-born Greek soprano, was perhaps the most famous and influential opera singer of the 20th century. Based on true s, Larraín's film will follow the life of the legendary figure with a focus on the days leading up to her untimely death in Paris at the age of 53. Though her artistic achievements are widely recognized, Callas was also a controversial figure and is often described as the original diva. The press exulted in covering Callas' weight loss, her alleged rivalry with fellow soprano singer Renata Tebaldi, and her affair with the Greek shipping magnate Aristotle Onassis.

Larraín's past two biopics, Jackie and Spencer, earned Oscar nominations for their respective stars, so there is an increasing expectation that Maria will do the same for its leading lady. Jolie has already won an Academy Award for her ing role in 2000's Girl, Interrupted, though Maria could earn her second Oscar nomination for a leading role following 2009's Changeling. Angelina Jolie doesn't act in movies as much as she used to, so Maria could make for a comeback story of sorts, which the Academy usually embraces.

Source: Variety