Madonna teams with Shawn Levy for Netflix limited series based on her life and career

When she was writing the screenplay, Madonna asked fans online if the project should be a movie or a series. Fans overwhelmingly said “series,” because her life and career span too many years for a two-hour movie. And it looks like she listened. There’s certainly enough for a season of TV. For years, every new Madonna album came with a new pop culture controversy. From shocking America with “Like a Virgin” on the first MTV VMAs, to the Pope excommunicating her from the Catholic Church over “Like a Prayer,” to publishing her book of erotica, aptly titled Sex. And that’s all just in the first decade! And then there are all the famous romances, from Sean Penn, to Prince, to Warren Beatty, to Guy Ritchie. Of course, her years as a fierce LGBTQ ally and AIDS prevention advocate must factor in as well. It’s all too much for one film.

Shawn Levy’s involvement may seem surprising, but it shouldn’t be. Madonna almost famously never licenses her music for films and television. But Stranger Things, which Levy produced, included “Material Girl” in season three. And her iconic hit “Like a Prayer” played over a key moment in Deadpool & Wolverine. When this project was still a feature film, Madonna herself planned to direct it. It’s still unclear if she plans to direct the mini-series, but we could see her at least directing some episodes herself. She once announced the movie version would carry the title Who’s That Girl, after one of her ’80s hit songs. But with a project that covers over forty years of her career, if she were to name it after one of her songs, may we suggest Live to Tell instead?