One of the funniest parts of Apple TV’s The Studio is the knowledge that many of its best bits feel directly drawn from the reality of Hollywood. And in the upcoming second season, the Emmy-winning comedy about struggling studio boss Matt Remick (Seth Rogen) is taking things to the next level, with a two-part episode directly inspired by Madonna’s unsuccessful efforts to direct her own biopic. The best bit: Madonna’s on board to play herself.
Variety reports that the two-part episode will also feature Julia Garner as herself, a fitting choice since in 2022, Garner was the actress who officially won the lead role in the Madonna biopic. From there, The Studio exits our reality, in which the biopic was scrapped in advance of Madonna’s 2023 world tour. In The Studio’s universe, Matt and his team at Continental Studios will be shepherding the completed movie to its premiere at the Venice Film Festival.
Also, Madonna isn’t the director behind the fictional version of this project; per the Variety report, “Emmy winner Donald Glover was also photographed on the Italian set with [Madonna] and Garner, so we’ll let you draw your own conclusions.”
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This will be Madonna’s first real acting role (outside of music videos) since a 2003 appearance on Will & Grace. She’ll join an illustrious legacy of guest actors on The Studio, which featured Martin Scorsese and Charlize Theron in its first episode and only ramped up the star power from there.
The second season of The Studio is in production now, sadly without the late Catherine O’Hara, who passed away this January. For more, see where The Studio landed on our Best TV Shows of 2025 list, and our review of Season 1, streaming now on Apple TV.
Also for those hoping that a real Madonna biopic is still a possibility, Shawn Levy is reportedly developing a limited series with Netflix about Madge’s life and career. Maybe that was the problem with trying to tell her story as a biopic — two to three hours just wasn’t enough time to capture it all.
