Angelina Jolie takes on a profoundly personal role in her upcoming French-speaking film, 'Couture', portraying an American filmmaker grappling with a devastating breast cancer diagnosis. The first trailer for the drama, set for release in France in February 2026, shows the 50-year-old actress in an emotionally raw performance.
A Heartbreaking Role with Deep Personal Resonance
In the film, directed by Alice Winocour, Jolie plays Maxine Walker, a filmmaker who travels to Paris to create a video for a fashion event. Despite her disinterest in the industry, she needs the money due to a divorce, a teenage daughter, and plans for her next project. Shortly after arriving, Maxine's world is shattered when she receives a breast cancer diagnosis, forcing her to confront her relationship with her body and identity.
Jolie has revealed she was drawn to the part because Maxine's struggle to prevent her diagnosis from defining her entirely mirrored her own mother's experience. Marcheline Bertrand, Jolie's mother, died in 2007 at age 56 after battling ovarian and breast cancer for eight years. 'My mother was ill for years,' Jolie shared. 'She felt as though the illness was becoming her entire identity.'
Beyond a Single Story: Interwoven Lives in Paris
'Couture' expands beyond Maxine's narrative to include the stories of two other women she meets. Angèle is a longtime makeup artist secretly writing a novel about her industry experiences, while Ada is an 18-year-old pharmacy student from Nairobi, Kenya, who is discovered as a model. The trailer also hints at a romantic connection between Maxine and her cinematographer, played by French actor Louis Garrel.
Jolie, who also produced the film, praised director Alice Winocour's 'unique' and delicate approach to the sensitive subject matter. 'Too often, films about women's struggles — especially cancer — talk about endings and sadness, rarely about life,' the actress stated. 'I love this film because it tells a story that goes far beyond the journey of a sick person: it shows life.'
A Lifelong Advocacy Informed by Family History
Jolie's connection to the film's themes is intensified by her own preventative health decisions. In 2013, after learning she carried the BRCA1 gene mutation—giving her an estimated 87% risk of breast cancer—she underwent a double mastectomy. She later had her ovaries and fallopian tubes removed in 2015. Her grandmother and aunt also died from cancer.
In a recent interview, the star advocated for wider access to genetic screening. 'Every woman should always be able to determine her own healthcare journey,' she asserted. 'Genetic testing and screening should be accessible and affordable for women with clear risk factors or a significant family history.' She emphasised that healthcare choices must be personal and supported, not dependent on finances or location.
With 'Couture', Angelina Jolie channels a family history of loss and her own medical journey into a performance that promises to be one of her most powerful and poignant to date.
