Martin Scorsese reunites with longtime muses Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro in the first trailer for Apple’s “Killers of the Flower Moon,” the upcoming Western epic based on David Grann’s 2017 best-selling non-fiction book “Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI.” Set in 1920s Oklahoma, the drama focuses on a series of Osage Nation murders over oil rights and the newly-formed FBI’s investigation into the killings. The supporting cast includes Jesse Plemons and “Certain Women” breakout Lily Gladstone.
For DiCaprio and De Niro, “Flower Moon” marks the first time the Oscar winners have worked together in a feature since Michael Caton-Jones’ 1993 drama “This Boy’s Life.” Both actors played fictionalized versions of themselves in Scorsese’s short film “The Audition.” De Niro earned Oscar nominations for best actor by starring in Scorsese’s “Taxi Driver,” “Cape Fear” and “Raging Bull,” winning for the latter. DiCaprio was Oscar-nominated for Scorsese’s “The Aviator” and “The Wolf of Wall Street.” “Flower Moon” will mark the first time all three collaborators have worked together on a feature.
DiCaprio stars in “Flower Moon” as Ernest Burkhart, the nephew of a powerful local rancher (De Niro) who becomes intertwined in the Osage Nation murders. Burkhart is married to an Indigenous woman, played by Gladstone. Plemons stars as Tom White, the lead FBI agent investigating the murders. “Flower Moon” was originally conceived for DiCaprio to play the FBI agent, but the actor reconfigured the script after deciding to switch roles to the more morally-ambiguous Ernest.
The clip introduces DiCaprio’s character, who says in an ominous voiceover: “There are many, so many, hungry wolves. Can you find the wolves in this picture?” As the trailer intensifies, glimpses flash by of DiCaprio, De Niro and Gladstone in scenes of chaos and violence as blood-curdling screams ring out in the background. “Greed is an animal,” the trailer’s title card reads, “that hungers for blood.” Before the teaser ends, DiCaprio once again asks: “Can you find the wolves in this picture?”
The full “Flower Moon” ensemble includes Scott Shepherd, Pat Healy, Tantoo Cardinal, Cara Jade Myers, JaNae Collins, Jillian Dion, William Belleau, Louis Cancelmi, Tatanka Means, Michael Abbott Jr., Gary Basaraba, Brendan Fraser and Grammy Award-winning musicians Jason Isbell and Sturgill Simpson. Scorsese was adamant about casting Indigenous actors as members of the Osage Nation in his film.
Apple and Paramount will release “Killers of the Flower Moon” in theaters on Oct. 20. Watch the first official trailer for the movie in the video below.
