ThatKillers of the Flower Moonmovieis now officially happening, as directorMartin Scorseseand actorLeonardo DiCapriohave firmed up the adaptation as their next project. The duo have been attached to an adaptation of authorDavid Grann’s book for quite some time, with DiCaprio’s involvement dating back to 2016 whenJ.J. Abramswas circling the director’s chair. The true-crime thriller takes place in the 1920s and recounts how a string of murders of members of the Osage nation in Oklahoma over oil arose as one of the FBI’s first major homicide investigations.
Deadline reports that Scorsese and DiCaprio have officially attached themselves to the project as director and star, respectively, for Imperative Entertainment.Eric Roth, the screenwriter behind films likeForrest GumpandThe Curious Case of Bennjamin Buttonand co-writer onBradley Cooper’sA Star Is Born, wrote the script. Scorsese and DiCaprio will both also produce the film.
The legendary filmmaker had this to say about tacklingKillers of the Flower Moon:
“When I read David Grann’s book, I immediately started seeing it—the people, the settings, the action—and I knew that I had to make it into a movie,” said Scorsese. “I’m so excited to be working with Eric Roth and reuniting with Leo DiCaprio to bring this truly unsettling American story to the screen.”
Despiterumorslast year that production might begin in 2018, filming is now aiming to start in summer 2019 with further scouting taking place. As an Oklahoma native myself, here’s hoping they opt to shoot in the real location where the events took place. If Oklahoma is good enough forPaul Dano’sWildlifeandTerrence Malick’sTo the Wonder, surely it’s good enough for Scorsese, right?
The filmmaker is currently in post-production on his Netflix gangster epicThe Irishman, which shot from September 2017 to March of this year. Scorsese is known for taking up to a year to edit his films, so it’s no surprise that movie isn’t coming out until 2019—where it’s sure to be one of Netflix’s biggest Oscar pushes. DiCaprio, meanwhile, is currently shootingQuentin Tarantino’sOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood.
