Maria

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Movie Details

Cast & Characters

• Angelina Jolie as Maria Callas
  • Aggelina Papadopoulou as young Maria Callas (1940)
  • Lídia Zelikman Kauders as young Maria (1930)
  • Christiana Aloneftis as young Maria (1947)
• Pierfrancesco Favino as Ferruccio, Maria’s loyal butler
• Alba Rohrwacher as Bruna, Maria’s loyal housemaid
• Haluk Bilginer as Aristotle Onassis, Maria’s former partner
• Kodi Smit-McPhee as Mandrax, Maria’s hallucination in the form of a young filmmaker
• Stephen Ashfield as Jeffrey Tate, a conductor who worked with Maria at the end of her career
• Valeria Golino as Yakinthi Callas, Maria’s older sister
  • Erofili Panagiotarea as young Yakinthi Callas
• Caspar Phillipson as John F. Kennedy
• Vincent Macaigne as Dr. Fontainebleau, a doctor sent by Ferruccio to check on Maria
• Lydia Koniordou as Litsa Callas, Maria’s mother
• Alessandro Bressanello as Giovanni Battista Meneghini, Maria’s ex-husband
• Lyes Salem as Waiter
• Suzie Kennedy as Marilyn Monroe

Storyline

Maria Callas, the world’s greatest opera singer, lives the last days of her life in 1970s Paris, as she confronts her identity and life.

About Maria Movie

Maria is a biographical psychological drama directed by Pablo Larraín, with a screenplay by Steven Knight. An international co-production between Italy, Germany, and the United States, the film stars Angelina Jolie as opera legend Maria Callas. The film also features Pierfrancesco Favino, Alba Rohrwacher, Haluk Bilginer, Stephen Ashfield, Valeria Golino, and Kodi Smit-McPhee in supporting roles. Maria is the third film in Larraín’s trilogy of biographical portraits of significant 20th-century women, following Jackie (2016) and Spencer (2021).

The film is produced by Juan de Dios Larraín (Fabula), Lorenzo Mieli (The Apartment Pictures, a Fremantle company), and Jonas Dornbach (Komplizen Film). The project was announced in October 2022, with Jolie confirmed for the lead role.

Filming began in Budapest in October 2023, with additional locations including Paris, Milan (where scenes were filmed at the iconic La Scala opera house), and the Greek towns of Pyrgos and Katakolo. Notably, scenes aboard Onassis’ yacht, Christina O, were shot on the actual vessel, which was rented for the production. Production designer Guy Hendrix Dyas collaborated with Larraín on the visual style, blending 1940s-1970s aesthetics with surreal musical sequences.

According to the film’s producers, no new fur was sourced for Jolie’s costumes, which are based on Callas’ original garments. They also consulted with animal rights organizations such as PETA regarding vintage fur items from the archive collection of costume designer Massimo Cantini Parrini.

Jolie undertook extensive preparation for her role, spending seven months training to sing opera. Initially anxious and doubtful of her abilities, she worked closely with vocal coach Eric Vetro, who recalled moments of emotional struggle, including when Jolie broke into tears during the training.

To master Callas’ distinctive singing techniques, particularly her ability to hold long notes, Jolie studied courses taught by the legendary opera singer herself. She also received coaching from opera singer Lori Stinson. For scenes depicting Callas’ prime, nearly 90 to 95 percent of the original recordings of the opera singer were used, with Jolie lip-synching to the tracks. However, in the film’s final act, Jolie’s own singing is prominently featured.

Maria Release Date

Maria had its world premiere at the 81st Venice International Film Festival on August 29, 2024, where it competed for the Golden Lion. On the day before its premiere, the film’s US distribution rights were acquired by Netflix. Following the premiere, FilmNation Entertainment handled some of the film’s international distribution deals, with Mubi releasing in Canada, 01 Distribution handling its release in Italy, and StudioCanal handling its release in the United Kingdom, Germany and Poland.

The film was released in select theaters in the United States on November 27, 2024, before streaming on Netflix on December 11. It was released in theatres in Italy on January 1, 2025, before being released in the UK and Ireland on January 10, and later in Germany on February 6.

It was featured in the Limelight section of the 54th International Film Festival Rotterdam to be screened in February 2025.

Where to Watch Maria Movie Online?

Netflix

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