Madison was relatively unknown before Anora. She had had small parts in the fifth instalment of the Scream horror franchise and in Quentin Tarantino's Once Upon A Time in Hollywood. The writer and director of Anora Sean Baker had seen her on screen before, and wrote the part of Ani especially for her.

Sean Baker's Anora starring Mikey Madison won the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival and has become one of the most praised movies of the year.