Madonna has released a mini movie to promote her new album ‘Confessions II’ and it stars a cast of hundreds doing very stupid things

By creammagazine, June 9, 2026

Leave it to culture icon Madonna to go next-level with the publicity for her new album Confessions II, which is set for release July 3, and is a followup to her successful dance outing of 21 years ago, Confessions on a Dance Floor.

The album is not only being pressed on countless variations including pressings specifically for her LGBTQIA market, various CD packages, and of course digitally.

Now, too, there’s a a short film of sorts (or long music video, if you like) released to promote the LP and first singles from it and available to view on YouTube.

Despite a very slick production aesthetic, ‘Confessions II: The Film’ appears to have been created on a whim and, boy, did it garner a lot of celebrity attention, with many a modern star cameoing in it (and I do use that term loosely).

Featured in the 13 minute short film (10 minutes if you don’t include the end credits) are Kate Moss, Julia Garner (who is also meant to be portraying Madonna in her upcoming life biopic), Sabrina Carpenter (who features on a new Madonna song, Bring Your Love), Gwendoline Christie, Richard E. Grant, Lourdes Leon, DJ Honey Dijon, Debi Mazar, Archie Madekwe, and even a few football players. Why the latter addition, I’m not sure, but given that sport sells well the world over, it’s probably a smart move.

But there are questions, many questions. First of all, why are many of the cast members featured with laser beams shining out of their butt-holes and beavers? It’s got to be one of the most absurd things I’ve seen in a music video, and I’ve seen all of them. Why is Madonna cavorting on a business boardroom table? It looks like she’s simulating what Charli XCX did in her recent clip for Chains of Love. Whoops, we’ve been there… Incidentally, the creative duo behind Madonna’s new clip are the same peeps behind Charli’s latest video for SS26 (that’s a fashion things for those out of the fash loop, standing for Spring Summer 2026). And why, oh why mid Maddie video, is she slapping men’s arses while they are trying to have a peaceful piss at the urinal? And why is everybody taking cocaine? Did I miss a memo?

Oh, and another question: what the fuck is Benedict Cumberbatch doing in here, doing a really bad Dad dance? E. Grant I understand – he represents a certain queer identity, but Cumberbatch looks placed solely for the purpose of representing dodgy dancers who don’t get into clubs but whom Madonna would like to see buying her records anyway.

Speaking of monopoly, oddity, and Machiavellian-like manipulation, the film was directed by creative duo, Torso, who are seemingly doing everybody’s clips (I’m sorry, films) today, while the entire cast, along with 250 backup extras, were reportedly all dressed by Italian design duo Dolce & Gabbana. Wait. Weren’t those guys anti-gay marriage only a few years ago?

As for the coke scenes, again, Charli was doing Charlie when Madonna was in her earlier Hung Up nappy-wearing days. The bigger question, really, is that for a record that has been created supposedly to express the body as a powerful tool and the dance floor as its temple, where is all the genuine introspection and reflection here? Sneaking audio tapes to DJs to play, spying on strangers doing drugs and god-knows-what in toilet cubicles, and having lime-green laser lights coming out of your vag are hardly spiritual moves.

God hopes the music itself (when we hear it in its entirity) has not been so haphazardly put together like the motley crew who appears to have been drawn in at random for this campaign. There doesn’t appear to be much spirituality or politic here, Madonna. Only desperation for attention – and there are more important things to tend to in this world than ego.

I totally get that the artist – oh who do I think I am, she is an Artist – wishes to use her platform to teach people that there is wonder in meditation and enlightenment in wonderment but we cannot all afford six private meditation classes a week when there are bills to be paid. I also appreciate the nod to Kylie Minogue’s Breathe in the line about breathing in the air, but if you’re going to do that, heck, at least do it subliminally and not with a proverbial Thor hammer to the audience’s heads. Even the Hollies, back in 1974, managed to balance gravitas with artifice, ultimately making it into the cultural psyche for good.

I’d love to get a hold onto some of the stems, if Stuart Price would be so kind (kinda like Avicii used to share with his fans) – so as to help transform a song like I Feel So Free into something Avicii-like liberating.

ABOUT THE ALBUM…

Currently, there are dozens of versions of the album cover art and I’ve lost track of what is genuinely coming out of the Madonna factory and what has been concocted by ardent fans. One particular fan went so far as to depict Madonna as the Catholic Madonna (ie: Virgin Mary), with her original Confessions persona playing the Jesus part. That’ll be a no, then.

While there is no apparent rhyme or reason for scenes in the new Madonna mini movie (come multiple music video), it at least gives us a taster of the music to come, which is all rather good for the club genre. That said, you can kind of tell that it’s all been put together quickly – in comparison to previous Madonna offerings. Thank the techno gods for insta-recording and post-editing, eh?

I for one am still rather excited about this sequel to Confessions on a Dance Floor. I still have a small mirror ball that came with a media promotional package for the original Confessions LP. That very mirror balls sits on top of my stereo speaker and is turned on any time a cool dance track is played on the turntable. And I’m pretty sure there’ll be a dozen new beaut ones to disco to in the living room when Confessions II officially drops.

And I’m looking forward to hearing a heck of a lot of remixes. Bring on the audio art!

Antonino Tati

‘Confessions II’ is set for release July 3, 2026.