Many of us have never heard of Patrizia Reggiano, the glamorous Italian socialite who was charged with the murder of her ex-husband Maurizio Gucci. Yet, the infamous story of Reggiano will be brought to the big screen later this year by Sir Ridley Scott in the highly anticipated ‘House of Gucci.’

Based on the novel by Sara Gay Forden, ‘The House of Gucci: A Sensational Story of Murder, Madness, Glamour and Greed,’ the plot centres around Patrizia Reggiani played by Lady Gaga and features an all all-star cast which includes Al Pacino, Jared Leto and Adam Driver. Whilst the film is still in production in Italy, it has nevertheless been hitting the headlines with various members of the Gucci family threatening legal action against how some of the characters in the film are portrayed. So, who’s who in House of Gucci?

The central character is undoubtedly Patrizia Reggiani. Patrizia married Maurizio Gucci in 1973, the grandson of Guccio Gucci who founded the Gucci brand in 1921 when it was just a small leather shop in Florence. Guccio had six children, one of whom was Rodolfo, Maurizio’s father and like any successful family business, power struggles were rife.  Following Rodolfo’s death in 1983, Patrizia and Maurizio won control of the Gucci brand in a high-profile legal war against the eldest of Guccio’s sons, Aldo, played by Al Pacino. But all was not well in their marriage.

Maurizio left Patrizia for a younger woman never to return home, and in 1991 the couple divorced. In 1997, Patrizia was arrested on suspicion of organising the murder of her ex-husband who was shot by a hit man, aged only 46. With huge media interest, Patrizia was nicknamed the ‘black widow,’ by the Italian press, was found guilty and sentenced to twenty-nine years in prison (in 2016 she was released on account of good behaviour.) When reportedly asked why she did not kill Maurizio herself, Patrizia said, “My eyesight is not so good. I didn’t want to miss.”

In recent weeks, members of the Gucci family have come forward, expressing their concerns over the lack of communication with the family and how certain characters will be depicted in the film. “I speak on behalf of the family. They are stealing the identity of a family to make a profit, to increase the income of the Hollywood system,” Patrizia Gucci, Maurizio's second cousin, told Associated Press. She went on to criticise the casting of Al Pacino as Aldo Gucci, “…fat, short, with sideburns, really ugly” and Jared Leto as Paolo Gucci as “horrible, horrible. I still feel offended.” Even Patrizia Reggiani herself is reportedly hurt that Lady Gaga has not had the “consideration and sensibility’ to meet with her in preparation for the role. The Gucci family are not taking any legal action for the time being against the film - but that’s not to say they won’t in the future.

Murder, glamour and madness – House of Gucci is slated for release in November 2021.