Martin Scorsese has revealed he only worked with Netflix on his latest film The Irishman out of “desperation”.

The director reunited with Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci for the gangster epic that follows real-life Mafia hitman Frank Sheeran across several decades of his life. It also stars Al Pacino and Stephen Graham.

Despite the stellar creative team behind the movie, The Irishman spent years in development hell, as traditional studios balked at the budget required for the cutting edge de-ageing technology used in the film.

The Irishman's budget is said to have been more than $140m (£108m) and Scorsese said Netflix stepped in when no one else would.

He told The Hollywood Reporter: "The studios just weren't interested in The Irishman. What they'd make back on something like that, they figured wasn't enough, particularly because I had to do the CGI.

"De Niro and I hadn't made a picture since 1995, Casino, and over the years we wanted to make another film. And he comes up with this book that screenwriter Eric Roth gave him I Heard You Paint Houses by Charles Brandt.

"Becomes extremely passionate and somewhat emotional about it. And I read the book and I said, 'This is what we'll do'. That was 2009. Got writer Steve Zaillian involved. Worked out the structure. Worked everything out. And could not get the financing.

"Then I got a call from manager-producer Rick Yorn, who said, 'Are you interested in Netflix?' And the main thing for me was creative freedom. The trade-off is that it's a streamer. I said, 'But it will be shown in theatres, right?"'

The Irishman had a limited theatrical run in November, allowing it to be eligible for the Oscars, before arriving on Netflix later that month.

On why he worked with Netflix, Scorsese said: "For me it was desperation."

independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/news/martin-scorsese-netflix-irishman-movie-robert-de-niro-joe-pesci-a9258901.html

All that hype don’t feel the same next year boi

King s*** tbh

even netflix couldn't save that movie

pure vanity on his part

i bet the studio's told marty why don't you just hire younger actors instead of thinking you and your boys club could have one last ride and you know, actually direct a movie

imagine hearing his pitch and saying he needs de-ageing tech for those flabby and sick actors LMAO

let him experiment

Man these f***s on forums telling Martin Scorsese what he should or shouldn’t do are so pathetic

did you read what OP posted?

Scorsese is mad that he didn't get financing - not because the Irishman was some ambitious film that was risque and new but because he couldn't make another film with his buddies.

and he rationalizes it as studios being concerned with profit and him potentially ceding creative integrity.

but look at it objectively, it rifts off the same themes contained in all his other mob films. but the difference is each time it gets a little worse, it's formulaic. mean streets, goodfellas, casino, gangs of new york, the departed, wolf of wall street. what's new about that?

scorsese is doing it for nostalgia. it reeks of entitlement and privilege.

The Irishman would’ve been half as dope if Pesci wasn’t in it

forreals they shoulda got ramriddlz to play young deniro just look at this s***

Martin is annoying but the work is great so I'll ignore it

Only on KTT can you see Ramriddlz brought up somehow in a thread about Martin Scorsese...incredible lol

Y'all see his granddaughter wrap his Christmas gifts in Marvel wrapping paper?

I don't wanna laugh at this but

Wow the replies in here are awful

Martin Scorsese be talking a wholelotta gas about other movies but can't even get funds for his movies

Damn you hate to see a boomer be so honest like that...

about what I expect from the KTT film section tbh

dudes got terrible taste all around

I f***ing love that movie lol.

lmao

facts

Lmao