Apple TV+ has inked an exclusive multi-year first-look deal with Martin Scorsese for future television shows and movies. As reported by Deadline, the deal means that Apple TV+ will have first dibs at content from Scorsese’s Sikelia Productions company.
News of this first-look deal between Scorsese and Apple TV+ comes after Apple reached a deal with Paramount to help finance the filmmaker’s Killers of the Flower Moon adaptation. The film, which is based on a best selling book of the same name, was in development at Paramount, but the studio grew weary of the $180 to $200 million price tag.
The relationship kicks off with Killers of the Flower Moon, the Eric Roth-scripted adaptation of the David Grann non-fiction book which will star Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro will star in. Apple won an auction with the $180 million + film originally optioned by Paramount came back on the market.
This is a major deal for Apple TV+, particularly because Netflix has also shown interest in working with Scorsese for streaming content. Scorsese’s last film The Irishman was originally in development at Paramount but the film’s rumored $175 million budget saw Paramount sell the film on to Netflix.
As we’ve explained in the past, Apple TV+ has generally been more open to premiering films in theaters first, whereas Netflix generally wants all originals debuted on its streaming service. This could be part of the reason why Scorsese is more inclined to work with Apple TV+ going forward than Netflix.
Sikelia Productions company is responsible for all of Scorsese’s projects, as Deadline points out:
The company manages and produces all of Scorsese’s projects including: 2019’s The Irishman, 2016’s Silence, 2013’s The Wolf of Wall Street, 2011’s Hugo, 2010’s Shutter Island, the 2006 Best Picture Oscar winner The Departed, 2004’s The Aviator, and the series Boardwalk Empire and Vinyl. The documentaries include: The 50 Year Argument, George Harrison: Living in the Material World, A Letter to Elia, Public Speaking, Shine A Light, and No Direction Home: Bob Dylan. Upcoming on the docu front are An Afternoon with SCTV, an Untitled Fran Lebowitz project and Untitled David Johansen project, all of which are in post production.
You can keep up with all of the latest Apple TV+ releases in our full guide here.
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