If you thought Christian Bale was the maestro of transformation, you need to take a look at what Bradley Cooper can do. The actor stars in the upcoming Netflix biopic called Maestro, and the first images of the cast was revealed recently, sending the internet into a frenzy. 

Directed by Cooper himself, the Netflix-backed biopic will be based on the life and time of legendary Broadway composer, Leonard Bernstein. Starring opposite Bradley Cooper is Carey Mulligan, who we’ve seen in Drive and The Great Gatsby, who will play his wife, Felicia Montealegre. 

Apart from showing us the actor who looks years older than he actually is, the streaming giant also showcased photos of Bernstein through various stages in life. While speaking to Variety, Cooper confirmed that production of Maestro started this month, with a scheduled release date of 2023. 

The 47-year old actor also confirmed that initially Steven Spielberg was attached to the biopic and wanted Cooper to play the lead. However, the actor, riding high on the success of A Star Is Born, was keen on writing and directing the movie himself. 

Speaking to the same publication, Cooper said “I [told Spielberg], ‘I always felt like I could play a conductor, but may I research the material and see if I can write it and direct it? Would you let me do that? Steven has a lot of interests—he’ll just choose one thing and all of the other things will be on hold. I think he knew he wasn’t going to make that movie for a while. He was kind enough to hand it off to me, and that’s what I’ve been doing for the last four and a half years.”

On the surface, it seems like a wise decision. After all, Cooper’s last directorial project with Lady Gaga garnered rave reviews from critics and audiences alike. The movie went on to earn eight Oscar nominations, including a nod for Best Picture, apart from grossing over $436 million worldwide. 

While Netflix hasn’t confirmed the exact release date of the movie, we expect it to drop around award season. If there’s anything Hollywood likes it’s movies about the arts. Could there be a potential best picture and best actor nod coming Cooper’s way? We think so. 

( Image credits: Netflix )