Martin Scorsese's 'Killers Of The Flower Moon' Production Gears Up For Seven-Month Shoot
Despite the pandemic, Martin Scorsese is hard at work on Killers of the Flower Moon, his upcoming film that reunites him with both Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio. Based on the book by David Grann, Killers of the Flower Moon tells the true story of how wealthy members of the Osage Nation were murdered in Osage County, Oklahoma in the early 1920s. Killers of the Flower Moon has suffered from some delays due to the pandemic and from original studio Paramount balking at the film's budget. On top of that, Scorsese said in a recent interview that he was worried he had lost some of his spark following work on The Irishamn. But in a recent interview, the filmmaker says he's already deeply engrossed in the pre-production work – a statement that comes with news that the film is gearing up for a seven-month shoot.
If I had my way, Martin Scorsese would make at least 100 more movies. Sadly, I'm not in charge of those things (at least not yet), and while he continues to create great works of art, Mr. Scorsese is also 78-years-old. And in a recent interview with Empire, the filmmaker made it sound like his age was catching up with him ever-so-slightly – that and the whole "deadly pandemic we can't seem to get out of" thing that's still going on.
"This Covid, this pandemic, has stopped a creative process. I turned in on myself," Scorsese said. "With Irishman, we achieved what I wanted to do. Whether it's great or good or not, I don't know. I know I could watch it. What I mean is I have to go back and find that spark. I don't know if I can. But the pandemic has made it almost obligatory to go and find it. Because everything else is gone, normal life is not there anymore. So what do you have? You have people you love, family, and you hope, a creative spark, and maybe that can be rekindled for a new film."
Thankfully, it sounds like Scorsese did indeed find that spark he was searching for and is working hard on his next movie, Killers of the Flower Moon. Speaking with the LA Times, Scorsese said: "We're still working on the film. I did costumes last night. We're working on casting, all done by Zoom and FaceTime. I miss people." I miss people, too, Marty. Well...some people.
In addition to Scorsese's interview, The Film Stage notes that the Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise, a daily newspaper in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, has revealed a casting call for the film that mentions a "seven-month shoot from February to September 2021," and that the production has "rented out 55,000 square feet of a building in Osage County for production."
Killers of the Flower Moon tells the true story of how several wealthy members of the Osage Nation were targeted for murder in the 1920s. The road to get the film made has been a bit bumpy – it was originally set up at Paramount, but the studio wasn't happy with the movie's hefty budget. Thankfully, Apple swooped in to save things. There's no release date in place yet, but since the project is expected to shoot until September, and Scorsese likes to take his time working with editor Thelma Schoonmaker, it's doubtful we'll see the movie this year.