Martin Scorsese will executive produce and direct the first two episodes of Miramax Television’s “Gangs of New York” series. The Oscar winner also directed the 2002 film adaptation of Herbert Asbury’s 1927 book of the same name.
Asbury’s “Gangs of New York” is a non-fiction novel that documents the confrontations between rival gangs in the mid-to-late-1800s. This period ended when the Italian-American mafia came to prominence in the 1920s during Prohibition. That era is the basis for HBO’s “Boardwalk Empire,” which Scorsese also executive produced. He even nabbed an Emmy for his work directing the pilot episode.
The director’s feature film adaptation of the book focused specifically on a period in 1862. It told the story of Amsterdam Vallon who returned the Five Points area of New York City to seek revenge against his father’s murderer, Bill the Butcher. The film boasted a star-studded cast including Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis, Liam Neeson, John C. Reilly, and Cameron Diaz.
But to be clear the “Gangs of New York” series will NOT be a continuation of the film. Rather, it will focus on different stories and characters from the book that were not necessarily in the film. Writer/director Brett C. Leonard has been internally developing the show with Miramax Television. Word is Scorsese responded to Leonard’s script and came on board the project. Leonard will also be an executive producer on the series along with Scorsese’s managers Rick Yorn and Chris Donnelly.
This project is also not to be confused with another now defunct “The Gangs Of New York” series adaption. That project was announced in 2013, and also had Scorsese attached. That show was going to follow organized gangs all over the US in places like Chicago and New Orleans as well as New York. The focus of that series was more on the birth of organized crime in America.
This particular “Gangs of New York” series is expected to be pitched to buyers this month. The film is currently available to stream on Amazon Prime Video. Stay tuned to Nerdbot for more news as it develops.
