It’s no secret that Martin Scorsese adores and worships cinema. I’m not talking about being first in line to see Fast Five (although I’m sure he is extensively up-to-date with Justin Lin‘s filmography), but rather the history of the medium he has so excelled at. With that history, comes all of the knowledge of Hollywood eras and tales that have since become legends. The latest project he has become attached to delves right into the very heart of a certain love saga.
Deadline reports that Paramount Pictures is close to finishing a deal for a feature film chronicling Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton‘s famous love affair. Prepping as a directing gig for Scorsese, the film is based on Furious Love, the novel by Sam Kashner and Nancy Schoenberger that was just released last year.
Their love story began on the set of Cleopatra, where the two were already in relationships. The couple eventually got married, divorced, then did it all again. Their relationship all but spawned the birth of paparazzi infestation we have today. And don’t expect your standard biopic fluff, as the film focuses on a “a torrid and tempestuous romance that is the stuff of Hollywood legend.”
With Natalie Portman and The King’s Speech scribe David Seidler a few of the many parties previously looking to grab the property, it will be interesting to see if Scorsese actually directs. The report states a screenwriter will be hired soon, with Burton’s estate and library being made available per Paramount’s agreement. Scorsese, on the other hand, has a mountain of projects.
He has Hugo Cabret coming this year in 3D. Then, there is his little project with Lars von Trier, his Frank Sinatra biopic, his epic reunion with Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Joe Pesci in The Irishman, and then the priest drama Silence. This short list doesn’t even scratch the surface of project he has been attached to. As he nears 70, I’d love to imagine he will be making movies forever, but that simply isn’t a possibility. With many other parties clamoring over this one, stay tuned to see if Paramount sets it up with a different director.
What do you think about this project? Is it a story you think needs to be told?