13 years after she directed her Golden Globe nominated debut feature film In The Land of Blood and Honey in and around Budapest, Angelina Jolie is set to return to Hungary in October, but this time in front of the camera.
The Golden Globe and Oscar winner is going to portray the legendary opera singer Maria Callas in Chilean director Pablo Larrain’s movie titled Maria, about her last years spent in sad solitude in Paris. This will be Larrain’s first film to be shot in the Hungarian capital, lending its architectural and whimsical beauty to Paris for the umpteenth time.
Larrain has long been fascinated by the story of the tragic fated Maria Callas, a Greek immigrant in New York who rose to be the most celebrated soprano of her time, became the undisputed No.1. star of opera houses around the world, and the long-time paramour of the Greek ship magnate Aristotle Onassis who left her to marry Jackie Kennedy. Callas moved to Italy then to France, and she never recovered from his treason and died of a heart attack at age 52.
The movie comes as an addition to Larrain’s portrayal of Jackie Kennedy (played by Natalie Portman) and Princess Diana in Spencer, for which Kristen Stewart got nominated for an Oscar. “I’m extremely happy to have a chance to conclude this process of depicting women who changed the fate of the 20th century, culturally speaking”, Larrain told Variety in June 2023. “But”, he added, “admiration is not enough to make a movie. And obviously, getting to the process, as I have done before with both Natalie and Kristen of listening to them and following them. I don’t have the skill to comprehend the character until a great actress – and in this case Angelina – comes up with their take. To do this with Angelina, a supremely brave and curious artist is a fascinating opportunity. A true gift.”
Angelina is just as ecstatic as her director, saying “I take very seriously the responsibility to Maria’s life and legacy. I will give all I can to meet the challenge. Pablo Larrain is a director I have long admired. To be allowed to tell more of Maria’s story with him, and with a script by Steven King (who also penned Spencer), is a dream.”
Pre-production on Maria is already on its way, but before boarding a Budapest bound plane, Larrain is flying to Venice to support his latest film El Conde (The Count) about General Pinochet, in competition at the festival, and Angelina is finishing postproduction of her directorial effort on Without Blood starring Salma Hayek.
Maria is an Apartment Pictures production in cooperation with the German Komplizen Films and the US based Fremantle Media Company (where Angelina has a multi-picture deal) and is jointly produced by Pablo Larrain and his brother Juan de Dios Larrain. Filming will start in October 2023 and wrap December 2023 on location in Budapest.
