Madonna has been spotted in Venice this week alongside actress Julia Garner, recreating the gondola scene from her 1984 “Like a Virgin” video while filming The Studio Season 2 in Italy.

She did it once in 1984, and she’s doing it again in 2026. Madonna, the eternal Queen of Pop, has returned to Venice this week, turning the city’s ancient canals into her personal stage once more, reminding the world exactly why she has never needed a reason to return somewhere, only a desire to.

Spotted gliding through the waterways aboard a traditional gondola, Madonna and actress Julia Garner recreated the iconic “Like a Virgin” moment, lip-syncing the 1984 classic together, sharing the video on Instagram, and sending the internet into a full spiral of nostalgia. 

The post has already collected over 292,000 likes, a number that tells you everything about how powerfully that image still resonates. 

The setting, of course, is no accident. Venice was where “Like a Virgin” was originally filmed over forty years ago, and Madonna knows better than anyone how to make history feel fresh. The two women were styled in coordinated looks, structured jackets paired with relaxed denim, striking exactly the right balance between elegance and edge against the timeless backdrop of the canals. 

Their time together in Italy is no fleeting visit, either. The pair have been spotted across the country multiple times in recent weeks, filming season two of Seth Rogen’s hit series “The Studio.” 

And there is more beneath the surface. Reports suggest that Garner is in the running to portray a young Madonna in an upcoming Netflix biopic charting the pop icon’s early career. Watching the two of them share a gondola on the very waters that helped launch that career feels, in that context, like something closer to a passing of the torch than a simple film shoot.

Madonna has also been busy elsewhere in Italy, fronting a new Dolce & Gabbana campaign, performing “La Bambola” in Italian, draped in bridal lingerie, veils, and lace gloves, channeling her “Like a Virgin” era with the kind of confidence that only four decades of reinvention can produce. 

Italy has always understood Madonna, and Madonna has always understood Italy. This week in Venice, that relationship is on full display once again, on the water, in the light, and very much on her own terms.

Ph: @marghefatina