Angelina Jolie Embodies Opera Singer Maria Callas in New Film ‘Maria’: She Will ‘Vault Back to the Top’

Angelina Jolie is banking on her performance in the upcoming biopic Maria to be the comeback performance that returns her to the status of box office superstar she held before her bitter, decade-long divorce drama from ex-Brad Pitt!

Angie — who has been painted as a modern-day diva — will take on the role of legendary opera singer Maria Callas in a role that many believe was made for her!

“This is a career-defining role,” says one Hollywood insider. “Angie is assuming the identity of a woman who was every bit the glamorous star she once was and can be the kind of film that vaults her right back to the top!”

Callas was the preeminent opera star of the ’60s and ’70s and was notorious for her temperamental personality, luxurious lifestyle and longtime partnership with Jacqueline Kennedy’s former husband and billionaire Aristotle Onassis.

She would frequently be seen in lavish gowns, furs and warming up for her peerless performances by enjoying a glass of Fernet-Branca enriched with mint leaves — which Angie, 49, emulates in the film.

The mix would warm up her powerful voice and prepare her to enchant the audience. Legend also has it that this very habit led to the birth of another Branca product, Brancamenta.

Angie dove into the role, even training to sing like the legend herself!

“Everybody here knows, I was terribly nervous,” she said of learning to sing opera. “I spent almost seven months training.”

As for Maria’s diva reputation, the actress revealed at a Film Festival press conference, “I think it often comes with a lot of negative connotations. I think I’ve relearned that word through Maria, and I have a new relationship to it.

“I think it is often other people’s perceptions of a woman that defines who she is and what she intended.”

Her inhabitation of the role was so convincing and compelling, the film drew an incredible eight-minute standing ovation at the recent Venice Film Festival.

“This role means everything to Angie,” a source spilled. “This woman was a symbol of the elegance and excellence that has been associated with her and she hopes will be again.”

“I think I share her vulnerability more than anything,” Angie said.