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Angelina Jolie‘s new movie Maria is garnering much buzz. The film, inspired by the life of opera singer Maria Callas, had its premiere Thursday, August 29, at the Venice Film Festival. Following the premiere, Jolie, 49, who plays the movie’s namesake, received a standing ovation that brought her to tears.
The standing ovation went on for eight minutes, during which, Jolie was visibly emotional, at times, covering her face with her hand. As she approached the stage for a conversation following the film, the movie’s director, Pablo Larraín, helped her up the stairs.
Vittorio Zunino Celotto/Getty Images
Prior to Maria, Jolie hadn’t had a starring role in a movie since 2021’s Eternals. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Jolie explained that she took a hiatus in order to spend more time with her children. She was inspired to return to acting because she was drawn to the story of Callas, as the singer’s pain felt “personal” to her.
In order to prepare for the role, Jolie said she took opera classes and Italian lessons to help her channel Callas even further.
“I would recommend almost every human being take an opera class,” Jolie said. “To exist and never have sung with your full body as loud as you could possibly sing — it’s something I think we should all feel. It’s scary, and it is rarely asked of us. It’s rarely asked of us in life to be all that we can be or feel all that we feel.”
The film comes amid Jolie’s divorce from Brad Pitt, as well as her 20-year-old son, Pax’s e-bike accident.
Maria has already received rave reviews from critics in attendance at the Venice Film Festival, with The Independent calling it a career-defining performance from Jolie, and New York Times saying Jolie is poised for an “Oscars comeback.”
Maria will be available to stream on Netflix later this year.
