Madonna says a budget dispute with Universal Pictures is what ultimately led to the shelving of her planned biopic. Speaking in an interview with Interview magazine, she describes a “falling out” with Universal over the film’s budget, saying her life story required a bigger-scale budget than the studio was willing to support. Multiple outlets report that the project had moved forward far enough to attract talent and development momentum, including Julia Garner being attached to portray Madonna. Variety adds that Universal had won a multi-studio auction in 2021 to make the biopic, with Madonna involved as a co-writer and director. The articles agree that the disagreement was specifically over budget levels rather than creative direction alone. While Madonna’s comments focus on Universal, some reporting also references follow-on efforts, including the idea that the project later connected with Netflix, though the central reason she gives for the failure of the biopic is the breakdown of negotiations with Universal. The outlets present her remarks as an explanation for why the long-gestating project did not proceed to production.