Scorsese, DiCaprio and De Niro are eyeing Killers of the Flower Moon

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese certainly seem to enjoy working together and their partnership has resulted in some stellar movies, so why put a stop to a good thing? The pair are already developing THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY (more on that later) and now Deadline reports that Scorsese and DiCaprio, along with Robert De Niro, are "seriously considering" adapting David Grann's "Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI".

The true-crime novel was snagged for $5 million last year by Imperative Entertainment and they're hoping to put together an A-list team in order to bring it to the big-screen. At the top of of that list is Martin Scorsese, Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro. Obviously this is far from a sure thing, but should the pair board the project it would serve as their seventh collaboration after GANGS OF NEW YORK, THE AVIATOR, THE DEPARTED, SHUTTER ISLAND, THE WOLF OF WALL STREET and the upcoming THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY. Adding Robert De Niro to the project only sweetens the pot, it's almost too much of a good thing.

The novel deals with the Osage Indian nation in Oklahoma in the 1920's, who became quite wealthy after oil was discovered beneath their land. Then, one by one, the Osage began to be killed off and the ensuing spiral of conspiracy, greed and murder got so bad that the FBI had to step in.

A synopsis of "Killers of the Flower Moon" via Amazon:

In this last remnant of the Wild West—where oilmen like J. P. Getty made their fortunes and where desperadoes like Al Spencer, the “Phantom Terror,” roamed—many of those who dared to investigate the killings were themselves murdered. As the death toll climbed to more than twenty-four, the FBI took up the case. It was one of the organization’s first major homicide investigations and the bureau badly bungled the case. In desperation, the young director, J. Edgar Hoover, turned to a former Texas Ranger named Tom White to unravel the mystery. White put together an undercover team, including one of the only American Indian agents in the bureau. The agents infiltrated the region, struggling to adopt the latest techniques of detection. Together with the Osage they began to expose one of the most chilling conspiracies in American history.

In Killers of the Flower Moon, David Grann revisits a shocking series of crimes in which dozens of people were murdered in cold blood. Based on years of research and startling new evidence, the book is a masterpiece of narrative nonfiction, as each step in the investigation reveals a series of sinister secrets and reversals. But more than that, it is a searing indictment of the callousness and prejudice toward American Indians that allowed the murderers to operate with impunity for so long. Killers of the Flower Moon is utterly compelling, but also emotionally devastating.

Like I said, this isn't a sure thing just yet, but I'd imagine that we'll be hearing more about the project before too long. As for THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY, that project is still in development and will see Leonardo DiCaprio playing Dr. H.H. Holmes, one of America's first notable serial killers. He's estimated to have murdered somewhere between 27-200 people after luring many of them to his World's Fair Hotel which was filled with a variety of diabolical traps including a gas chamber, crematorium, dissecting table, and an assortment of torture equipment. Based on the Erik Larson novel, THE DEVIL IN THE WHITE CITY will "intertwine the true tale of the 1893 World's Fair and the cunning serial killer who used the fair to lure his victims to their death."