Which singer played Eva Perón in the 1996 film "Evita”?

Madonna nabbed the leading role of Eva Perón in “Evita” (1996), which tracked the politician’s life from early years of poverty to becoming Argentina’s First Lady. The film, which was inspired by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s musical of the same name, was directed by Alan Parker and co-starred Jonathan Pryce as an Argentine colonel and later president, Juan Perón, and Antonio Banderas as an Argentine everyman, Ché.

When Parker signed onto the film, Michelle Pfeiffer was the actress set to play Eva, but she left the project after having a baby during the long development process. On the director’s website, he recalled how he received a letter from Madonna out of the blue while spending Christmas in England in 1994. He described her handwritten, four-page letter as “extraordinarily passionate and sincere.” Madonna ultimately won a Golden Globe for her portrayal.