New Film “Maestà” to Depict Italy’s Last Queen, Maria José of Savoy

Italian-American director Ginevra Elkann will helm *Maestà* (“Majesty”), a historical drama that dramatizes the brief reign of Maria José of Savoy, Italy’s last queen. The project originated from an idea by veteran auteur Marco Bellocchio, who co-writes the screenplay with Elkann and journalist-author Chiara Barzini. Production is overseen by Simone Gattoni for Rome-based Kavac Film.

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After World War II, King Vittorio Emanuele III abdicated on 9 May 1946 in favor of his son, Prince Umberto II. Maria José, a Belgian princess, became queen consort and was popularly dubbed the “May Queen.” The monarchy lasted only until the 2 June 1946 referendum, when Italians voted to abolish the crown, prompting the Savoy family’s exile.

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• Maria José of Savoy – Belgian daughter of King Albert I, anti-fascist, and Italy’s queen for 27 days.

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• Ginevra Elkann – Granddaughter of former Fiat chief Gianni Agnelli, London Film School graduate, previously directed *Magari* (2019) and *I Told You So* (2023).

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• Marco Bellocchio – Italian director of *The Traitor* and HBO’s *Portobello*, originating the film’s concept.

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• Chiara Barzini – Co-writer and longtime collaborator with Elkann.

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• Simone Gattoni – CEO of Kavac Film, the production company founded by Bellocchio and Francesca Calvelli.

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*Maestà* focuses on the month of May 1946, “suspended between her rise to the throne and the referendum that ended the monarchy.” Filming is scheduled for late 2026, with Kavac Film handling financing and distribution. The screenplay is a joint effort of Bellocchio, Elkann, and Barzini, and the project is slated for an international release pending festival screenings.

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Bellocchio described Maria José as a figure whose “majesty…was dramatically shattered by her marriage to Prince Umberto” and emphasized the film’s aim to explore the “brutality of fascism” that intersected her brief rule. Elkann highlighted the queen’s “intelligent, cultured” nature and framed the narrative as a study of “her hopes and doubts” during those weeks. Barzini noted her interest in characters who witness “the end of a world” while remaining emotionally attached to it.

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The film offers Italians a lens to re-examine the nation’s fascist legacy through the perspective of a non-Italian monarch. By avoiding nostalgia or condemnation, *Maestà* seeks to present a nuanced portrait of personal ambition colliding with irreversible political change, potentially prompting renewed public discussion about the monarchy’s role in post-war Italy.

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• “I’ve often thought of Maria José, the ‘May Queen,’ [in terms of] the majesty that she had certainly dreamed of since she was a child,” — Marco Bellocchio, Director

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• “she was indeed a queen, but only for a few weeks.” — Ginevra Elkann, Director

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• “ She added: “Her tragedy is not her defeat, but her [growing] awareness: the realization that she was born for something that will never happen.” — Ginevra Elkann, Director

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• “How can you not love a character dramatically on the threshold of an irreversible historical transformation? I’m interested in women and men who witness the end of a world; who perceive its cracks and decline, but who remain emotionally tied to it. Maria José belongs to this category of suspended figures.” — Chiara Barzini, Co-writer

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• “ She added, “Modern, cultured, anti-fascist and politically lucid, she understands that after the catastrophe of war, continuing to cling on to the illusions of monarchy is now anachronistic.” — Chiara Barzini, Co-writer

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No contradictory information or reported criticism appears in the available sources; details such as the exact release date remain undisclosed.

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*Maestà* is slated for festival premieres in early 2027, after which distribution partners will announce theatrical and streaming plans.

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