Scorsese's ‘Sinatra' Postponed — Was Supposed to Shoot in November

Over the weekend, I mentioned a source telling me that Martin Scorsese’s “The Life of Jesus” had its September shoot suddenly canceled. Production was supposed to last a breezy four weeks. I was told the script wasn’t up to par, and Scorsese would be further working on it.

Regardless, Variety’s Clayton Davis has confirmed my intel. The film, set to star Andrew Garfield, is still in development, and Scorsese plans to independently finance it. The shoot was supposed to take place in Egypt, Italy and Israel.

Of course, I wouldn’t be writing this if there weren’t fresh new details to talk about it. Variety is also reporting that Scorsese’s “Sinatra,” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence, was actually supposed to shoot this November, but those plans have also been “postponed.”

According to multiple sources said to be involved with the production, artisans and other key stakeholders who had signed on to the Sinatra project were notified in mid-August that the November start date had been canceled, with no rescheduled date.

No studio has yet to sign on to “Sinatra,” although Variety’s sources are telling him Apple and Sony might be circling the project. Whether the Sinatra estate has given firm approval to make the biopic is a whole other story, but if Scorsese was planning a November shoot, then maybe they have? Or is their non-approval the reason why it was delayed?

For over a decade the Sinatra family estate has blocked Scorsese from making the biopic about Frank, and recent comments by Nancy Sinatra made it sound like they were still not interested. I’m not sure if Scorsese has somehow managed to convince them, but I remain skeptical.

With that said, I stand by my firm belief that Scorsese’s next film will be his adaptation of Marilynne Robinson’s “Home,” which he’s been working with Todd Field and Kent Jones to turn into a trilogy. Field is also supposed to direct one of the books from Robinson’s trilogy, “Gilead,” and I’m starting to hear that might be his next film as well.