The early life and career hurdles of pop superstar Madonna will be the subject of an upcoming biopic currently being developed at Universal, according to a report.
Blonde Ambition, from first-time screenwriter Elyse Hollander, will chronicle the early years of the singer — real name Madonna Louise Ciccone — as she works on her first album and forges her way into the music industry in early 1980s New York.
Hollander’s script placed first on the 2016 Black List, the annual list of the best unproduced screenplays circulating around the film industry, according to the Hollywood Reporter, which first broke the news of the pickup.
Oscar-nominated producer Michael De Luca (Fifty Shades of Grey, Moneyball) is set to produce under his De Luca Productions banner along with Brett Ratner’s RatPac Entertainment and Bellevue Productions’ John Zaozirny.
Madonna’s early years were previously the subject of a 1994 TV movie called Madonna: Innocence Lost, that starred Terumi Matthews as the pop superstar.
Madonna released her latest album, Rebel Heart, in 2015 and followed it up with a world tour of the same name.
The 58-year-old singer has made headlines in recent months for her political activism, including her staunch opposition to President Donald Trump.
In January, Madonna delivered a speech at the Women’s March in Washington in which she said she has often thought about “blowing up the White House.”
The singer was a vocal supporter of former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton during the 2016 campaign, at one point offering to reward Clinton voters with oral sex.
No director or release date has yet been set for Blonde Ambition.
Follow Daniel Nussbaum on Twitter: @dznussbaum