Auteur filmmaker Martin Scorsese (“Goodfellas,” “Passion of the Christ“) will be helming two back-to-back movies soon. The first is about Jesus, and the second is a Frank Sinatra biopic. He’s already reportedly assembled a star-studded cast for the biopic. With names including Leonardo DiCaprio as ol Blue Eyes himself, and Jennifer Lawrence playing Sinatra’s second wife, Hollywood star Ava Gardner.
Though it’s possible some pushback from estate owner of Sinatra may happen, as Frank’s daughter Tina Sinatra hasn’t given her blessing to the project yet.
It’s no wonder Tina Sinatra has some qualms about this film. Given Frank had left her mother, Nancy Barbato, and their three children, including Tina. To make the sting worse, just a few days after the divorce was finalized, he was married again, this time to Ava Gardner. Sinatra and Gardner’s marriage is reportedly one of the focuses of the film, which would make for a turbulent and chaotic movie. Their marriage was less than grand with Sinatra constantly becoming jealous over her leading men and she would flip the table if she caught him flirting. It was a match maid in tabloid heaven with magazines and outlets now going from calling him “The Voice” to “The Angry Voice” because of his turbulent relationship with her.
Casting DiCaprio seems an easy choice for the crooner, considering his taste for younger women. If you know your Sinatra history, you’ll remember that immediately after his divorce from Ava, he was wed to actress Mia Farrow, who was just 21 and he was 50. Farrow is the daughter of one of Frank’s best friends, so that makes it even weirder. Given DiCaprio’s history, this should be an easy role to play. Not saying he isn’t great in films, he is, but this casting is a little on the nose. The big question though- can DiCaprio sing?
I suppose if I had one good thing to say about Sinatra, he wasn’t racist in a time when it was expected that if you were White, you would be. He worked with many Black artists throughout his lifetime, like fellow Ratpack member Sammy Davis Jr., and the legendary Ella Fitzgerald.
Both Apple and Sony are equally interested in this upcoming biopic and there could likely be a bidding war.
