Julia Garner channels Madonna in CR Fashion Book spread as Madonna biopic remains in progress
The 31-year-old actress emulates the pop icon’s early-1990s look in a Gucci-forward spread, as Madonna’s biopic continues to navigate development hurdles.
Julia Garner channels Madonna's early-1990s iconography in a new CR Fashion Book photo spread, a nod to the pop icon as she confirmed that Madonna's biopic remains in development. The 31-year-old actress embodies the era's sultry aesthetic, wearing a tiny black Gucci bra paired with hot pants, tights and heels, while her bleach-blonde hair is styled in wispy, curled tufts.
Photographed by Erika Kamano, Garner appears in a sequence of Gucci looks, including a pink pencil skirt paired with a red bodysuit, a Gucci bodysuit and skirt on a golden yellow retro couch, and a gray Gucci skirt suit that contrasts with a skin-baring lingerie moment. The spread also features Garner striking poses on a chair and on various neon-toned backdrops, underscoring a deliberate homage to Madonna's provocative fashion from that era.
Behind the glamour, the Madonna biopic has continued to face production delays. Madonna has long pursued a film about her life, with 2023 projects tied to a title reminiscent of her 1987 hit. Diablo Cody was at one point attached as co-writer, and the project later pivoted toward Madonna's international Celebration tour. Reports in 2024 indicated Madonna had written much of the script with Erin Cressida Wilson and had identified Garner as the actress to portray her. In November, Madonna publicly vented about road blocks on social media, saying she had been working on the film for four years and that people urged downsizing and taking a smaller approach.
During the CR Fashion Book piece, Garner also opened up about her path to acting. She recalled growing up watching films and visiting art museums, noting that art and philosophy were important to her from a young age. She said becoming an actor felt distant from daily life at times and that she was shy as a teenager. Garner explained she pursued acting because her sister did it, and she emphasized that the pull was not about teenage attention but about how acting made her heart and soul feel, even if it initially felt unfamiliar.