WhileMartin Scorsesehas continued to put out some of the best films of the decade in his later years, his forays into TV have been a bit of a mixed bag.Boardwalk Empire, which he worked on withTerence Winter, remains one of the best series that HBO has yet to put out, boasting career-best work from the likes ofSteve BuscemiandMichael Pitt. That’s not an easy act to follow but even putting that into account, his second HBO series,Vinyl, was only remarkable in its ambitions. In reality, the series was politically problematic and required intense effort to follow with any kind of dedicated interest or clarity.
Now, Scorsese looks set to return to the small screen once again withThe Caesars, which will focus on the “youth and vitality” of early Roman leaders. The series, which does not have a network yet, will see theSilencedirector teaming withMichael Hirst, who has a long history of working on prestigious period dramas on TV and in film. Hirst is currently best known for History Channel’sVikingsbut he was also a main writer for Showtime’sThe Tudorsand Starz’sCamelot.Cate Blanchettfans will know him best as the writer behindElizabethandElizabeth: The Golden Age, however. which resulted in a BAFTA nomination for the writer.
For Scorsese, the series would offer a rare chance to dig into Italian history, an outspoken passion of the filmmaker, but one has to wonder just when we’re going to see any movement on this. Scorsese has a full dance card as of right now, finishing up work on Netflix’sThe Irishmanwhile preparing an adaptation ofDavid Grann’s amazingKillers of the Flower Moonas well as a movie about President Teddy Roosevelt and an unnamed project starringSharon Stone. And that’s all just assuming that nothing else comes around to divert his attentions. Nevertheless, the series, which will open with Julius Caesar’s rise to power, is currently set to begin production in Italy in 2019 that would likely mean a 2020 bow for the series, according toThe Guardian. In other words,The Caesarsmight end up being Scorsese’s follow-up toThe Irishman, making it one of the most promising TV projects currently on the horizon.
