A not-yet-titled Martin Scorsese crime drama, expected to be a $200 million project set in Hawaii, has been involved in a bidding war, with Netflix poised to land the movie.
According to Deadline, high bidders apparently have included Amazon, Apple, Warner Bros. and another unnamed studio, but why not? Besides director Scorsese, the film’s cast boasts Leonardo DiCaprio, Emily Blunt and Hawaii’s Dwayne Johnson. The story –set in Hawaii of the 1960s and ‘70s — is about a mob boss (Johnson) who battles rival competitors for control of the shady underworld of Hawaii crime.
As Deadline described it, “The thumbnail description: Imagine Robert De Niro’s Jimmy the gent from ‘Goodfellas,’ but as a ruthless Hawaiian crime boss, based on a real figure, who battled encroaching rivals for control of organized crime in Hawaii.”
Scorsese has enlisted Nick Bilton, a Vanity Fair journalist and documentary filmmaker, to write the screenplay. If based on truth, the crime boss has not yet been identified but it’s possible that the character may be fictionized.
The film is targeting a shooting date in 2026 – and if it’s a set-in-Hawaii film, it makes sense it would be shot here, wholly or partially – but timing will be a critical issue. DiCaprio is committed to do Damien Chazelle’s “Evel Knievel on Tour,” a Paramount biopic on the stuntman, this summer, as well as another Scorsese project, “Devil in the White City” for 20th Century Studios.
The mobster to be portrayed by Johnson was formidable and powerful, who formulated the islands’ most notorious criminal empire, which launched warfare with mainland syndications, while fighting to preserve and fortify his ancestral cultural turf.
Alliances abound among the movers-and-shakers in the looming project. Scorsese and DiCaprio worked recently in their Best Picture nominee, “Killers of the Flower Moon” and earlier pics included “The Aviator,” “The Gangs of New York,” and the “Wolf of Wall Street.” Johnson and Blunt worked opposite each other in “Jungle Cruise” and will team up again in the forthcoming “Smashing Machine.”
The production team will include Scorsese, Johnson, Blunt, DiCaprio, Bilton, Dany Garcia, Lisa Frechette and Rick Yorn…
Season outlook
Manoa Valley Theatre has done the unthinkable; it’s announced — to season ticket subscribers for now — half the production titles in its 2025-26 season.
Three shows are being announced now, to season ticket holders, with the final three TBA when the full slate is unveiled, The teasers: one is a local-style comedy by Lee Cataluna, popular in earlier stagings at Kumu Kahua, but the first time at MVT. A major musical will make its Hawaii debut at Manoa, and the third entry is a satire that played on Broadway last year.
Over at Diamond Head Theatre, there’s no leak or pre-announcements of its 2025-26 slate. There will be an invitational unveiling, March 2, with snippets of the future shared in a brief announcement program….
And that’s Show Biz…