Martin Scorsese’s next project is Killers of the Flower Moon, a Western crime drama starring Leonardo DiCaprio, and these are the latest Killers of the Flower Moon updates. After doing something different with the fantasy movie Hugo, Scorsese returned to the crime genre with a touch of black comedy with The Wolf of Wall Street and took a break from the genre again with the historical drama Silence. Following the release of The Irishman, which reunited him with some of his frequent collaborators (Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Harvey Keitel), Scorsese is working on another crime movie.
However, it’s no ordinary crime drama, as Scorcese’s Killers of the Flower Moon has a touch of Western themes. It also marks his reunion with another of his frequent collaborators: Leonardo DiCaprio. DiCaprio and Scorsese joined forces for the first time in 2002 in Gangs of New York, and have worked together various times ever since, most notably in The Departed and The Wolf of Wall Street. Killers of the Flower Moon will also bring back the Scorsese-De Niro duo in a story that fits the director’s style quite well – and here are the newest Killers of the Flower Moon updates.
The Latest Killers Of The Flower Moon News
Killers of the Flower Moon updates reveal new footage from the movie showcasing Martin Scorsese’s first foray into the Western genre with the first trailer for Killers of the Flower Moon. However, while there are some exciting Western moments teased in the trailer, it looks to be a dark and intense crime story as well. Interestingly, the footage begins with the focus on Leonardo DiCaprio’s character of Ernest Burkhart before the point of view of the trailer shifts to focus on Lily Gladstone as Mollie Burkhart. The footage shows off the epic scale of Scorsese’s latest without diving too much into the story.
Killers Of The Flower Moon Is Confirmed
Killers of the Flower Moon updates reveal that the movie was initially bought out to be made all the way back in 2016, with the announcement that Martin Scorcese, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Robert De Niro were involved with the adaptation. Filming was supposed to start in 2018, but was delayed to 2019, with Scorcese deciding to take on The Irishman first. Production was set back again, this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After battling it out over funding, Apple TV+ agreed to co-finance and co-distribute the movie with Paramount. Principal photography finally began on Killers of the Flower Moon in April 2021 but faced further delays after all that.
Killers Of The Flower Moon Release Date
Killers of the Flower Moon saw Apple TV+ come into the mix as co-financier and co-distributor, and so it will be released on that platform. The latest trailer notes October 2023 as when it arrives exclusively in theaters. The limited release is set for October 6, while the wider release will come on October 20, 2023. As for the Apple TV+ streaming date, that is still to be determined and isn’t scheduled yet.
Killers Of The Flower Moon Cast
Killers of the Flower Moon went through some minor cast changes during pre-production. The character of Tom White, the FBI agent who leads the investigation, was written for Leonardo DiCaprio (Don’t Look Up), but he asked to have his role changed to that of Ernest Burkhart. Jesse Plemons (The Irishman) was then cast as Tom White and DiCaprio as Ernest, and they are joined by Robert De Niro (Amsterdam) as William Hale and Lily Gladstone (Billions) as Mollie Burkhart.
Tantoo Cardinal (Dances With Wolves) will play Lizzie Q, and Jason Isbell (A Star is Born) takes on the role of Bill Smith. Sturgill Simpson (The Hunt) plays Henry Grammer, and Tatanka Means (Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials) will be John Wren. Academy award-winning actor Brendan Fraser (The Whale) was a last-minute addition to the cast, and he will be taking on the part of lawyer WS Hamilton. John Lithgow (Love is Strange) was also a late addition and will be playing Prosecutor Leaward.
Killers Of The Flower Moon Story Details
Killers of the Flower Moon updates report that the movie should follow the book pretty closely. The movie is based on the nonfiction book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by David Grann. In the book, Grann investigates a series of murders of wealthy Osage people that took place in Osage County, Oklahoma, in the early 1920s after oil deposits were discovered in their land. As the Osage people prepared to receive the wealth to which they were legally entitled from sales of the oil deposits, the administrators of the land had other ideas.
These people had a history of bad relations with the Osage people, and decided they could simplify their profit-mongering of the oil profits by eliminating those they considered operated as the “middle man” – and those were the Osage people. William Hale was one of the masterminds behind the plan to murder the Osage people, and his nephew, Ernest Burkhart, was a key player. Scorcese reportedly has been working closely with the Osage people since the inception of Eric Roth’s script. In addition, the production was praised by writer David Grann. This should give audiences high hopes that Scorcese’s version of events should be both respectful and faithful to history.
Killers Of The Flower Moon Trailer
The first Killers of the Flower Moon trailer was released, offering fans the long-awaited look at the Western epic. The footage doesn’t dive too much into the story of the movie and the only dialogue featured in the trailer comes from Leonardo DiCaprio’s Ernest Berkhart reading a story about the Osage. However, the footage does an effective job of giving an idea of the story and what to expect from the movie while showcasing Martin Scorsese’s brilliant filmmaking talents.
The footage opens with Osage people dancing and celebrating as oil erupts from the land with a slow-motion and foreboding music that suggests this moment of happiness will be short-lived. The footage then explores the uneasy cultural clashes of the Oscar people and the wealthy white people come to profit off their oil-rich land. The footage grows in tension and violence with the repeated phrase said by Berkhart “can you spot the wolves in this picture?“
The footage puts an emphasis on DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone as the central roles of the story. Robert De Niro also has a strong presence in the trailer, feeling like the villainous character at the center of it. Among some of the other key cast members shown in the brief footage, Brendan Fraser continues his comeback with his role confirmed while Jesse Plemons can be seen as the lawman questioning Berkhart at one point. In all, the footage adds to the immense excitement for Killers of the Flower Moon.
