Angelina Jolie steps into the shoes of opera legend Maria Callas in the new biopic Maria, directed by Pablo Larraín. The first trailer reveals Jolie’s emotional portrayal, showcasing her transformation into the famous soprano.

Legendary opera singer Maria Callas is the subject of Pablo Lorraín's newest 20th-century woman biopic. Angelina Jolie is the reason to see it.

Angelina Jolie glides through the final days of Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín’s “Maria." Currently playing in select theaters and streaming on Netflix Dec. 11, “Maria," rated R, plays like an opera, grandly theatrical and evocative of a larger-than-life star.

Maria, the Maria Callas biopic-of-sorts starring Angelina Jolie, is directed by Pablo Larraín and written by Steven Knight.

Finding the breath of Maria Callas was enough to bring things out of Jolie that she didn’t even know were in her.

From being rejected by her mother for being a girl to becoming an opera singer, Maria Callas's life is shown in a Netflix biographical film titled Maria. | First Women, US Edition, Entertainment

The performance is so striking. It’s almost like, to me, Jesse Eisenberg is Mark Zuckerberg. Denzel Washington is Malcolm X, in a certain way. And I think you are Maria Callas in the same way. In this movie, in so many moments, you are performing with your whole body.

To the generations of opera singers that came after her, she’s still an era-defining consummate artist. “She’s an icon. There’s no other way to put it,” said bass Morris Robinson, who recently sang the role of Ramfis in “Aida” with Boston Lyric Opera.