Chilean filmmaker Pablo Larraín is in the sweetest of positions. He doesn’t really do one for them or one for him since all his films are artful and uncompromising, but he does have this kind of track going where he does dramas with American stars—most of them non-traditional biopics (“Jackie,” with Natalie Portman, “Spencer,” with Kristen Stewart) and then goes off and makes less commercial work that is more personal and without major stars (“No,” “El Conde,” but even the former starred Gael Garcia Bernal). His latest is “Maria,” which stars Angelina Jolie as famed opera singer Maria Callas, and today, Larraín has released some first-look photos that he took himself.
Larraín’s new film will explore the life of the legendary, iconic, and controversial singer Maria Callas, often described as the original diva. The cast also features Pierfrancesco Favino (“Adagio,” “The Hummingbird”), Alba Rohrwacher (“La Chimera,” “Hungry Hearts”), Haluk Bilginer (“Winter Sleep”), Kodi Smit-McPhee (“The Power of the Dog,” “Elvis)” and Valeria Golino (“Portrait of a Lady on Fire,” “Caos Calmo”)
The film reunites him with “Spencer” scribe Steven Knight, also known for “Peaky Blinders” and “Eastern Promises.” The script was completed prior to the WGA strike. MARIA is produced by Juan de Dios Larraín for Fabula, Jonas Dornbach for Komplizen Film, and Lorenzo Mieli for The Apartment, a Fremantle Company. Worldwide sales for MARIA will be handled by FilmNation Entertainment.
Here’s the official synopsis:
Based on true accounts, MARIA tells the tumultuous, beautiful, and tragic story of the life of the world’s greatest opera singer, relived and re-imagined during her final days in 1970’s Paris. The shoot will take place over eight weeks in Paris, Greece, Budapest, and Milan.
“I am incredibly excited to start production on Maria,” Larraín wrote in a statement. “I hope will bring Maria Callas’s 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.”
Jolie’s costumes in the film are based on original garments worn by Callas. The production has consulted with animal rights groups, including PETA, regarding the use of vintage fur items worn in the film from costume designer Massimo Cantini Parrini’s archive collection. A conscious decision was made not to use or source any new fur.
MARIA is an independent production signed to a SAG-AFTRA Interim Agreement. Check out the first look photos below, and as a bonus, check out this Empire Podcast recent episode featuring Larraín discussing his most recently released film “El Conde” (he does talk about “Maria,” but ever so slightly not wanting to jinx things).
