The upcoming Mr. Scorsese documentary series will be a comprehensive five-part film portrait of legendary director Martin Scorsese — the man behind the camera, over a decades-long career, on films ranging from Taxi Driver to Killers of the Flower Moon — the streamer said Thursday.
Directed by filmmaker Rebecca Miller, the series promises an unprecedented look into the life and work of one of cinema’s most influential figures. But we don’t know the release date yet.
5-part Mr. Scorsese documentary series brings the legendary director’s life to Apple TV+
Famed filmmaker Scorsese, an international household name for so long and so consistently he needs no introduction, will be the subject, not the director, of the new documentary series on Apple TV+. Director Rebecca Miller, known for her work on She Came to Me and Personal Velocity, spent five years crafting this intimate portrait of Scorsese. What began as a single documentary evolved into a five-part series as Miller gained exclusive, unrestricted access to Scorsese’s private archives and personal history, Apple TV+ said.
“I am so grateful to have been given the artistic freedom and access to create a cinematic portrait of one of our greatest living artists, Martin Scorsese,” Miller said. “His work and life are so vast and so compelling that the piece evolved from one to five parts over a five-year period; crafting this documentary alongside my longtime collaborators has been one of the defining experiences of my life as a filmmaker.”
Extensive conversations with Scorsese anchor the series, the streamer said. The chats offer viewers direct insight into his creative process and personal philosophy. The project also features never-before-seen interviews with an impressive roster of collaborators, friends and family members.
Star-studded cast of contributors
The Mr. Scorsese documentary series brings together many of the director’s most frequent collaborators and Hollywood luminaries. Robert De Niro, who appeared in eight Scorsese films including Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Goodfellas, provides insights into their decades-long creative partnership. Leonardo DiCaprio, who has worked with Scorsese on five films including The Departed, The Wolf of Wall Street, and most recently Apple Original Film Killers of the Flower Moon, also contributes.
Other notable participants include Daniel Day-Lewis, Mick Jagger, Robbie Robertson, longtime editor Thelma Schoonmaker, Steven Spielberg, Sharon Stone, Jodie Foster, Paul Schrader, Margot Robbie, Cate Blanchett, Jay Cocks and cinematographer Rodrigo Prieto. The series also features intimate perspectives from Scorsese’s family, including his children, wife Helen Morris and close childhood friends.
Exploring Scorsese’s cinematic legacy
Photo: Apple TV+
The documentary examines how Scorsese’s personal experiences shaped his artistic vision, tracing his journey from his New York University student films to his current status as a master filmmaker. Throughout his career, Scorsese has explored recurring themes that fascinate him, particularly the complex relationship between good and evil in human nature.
Scorsese’s filmmaking style, heavily influenced by his Italian-American background and New York City upbringing, has consistently centered on exploring crime, machismo, nihilism, and Catholic concepts of guilt and redemption. His trademark techniques include extensive use of slow motion and freeze frames, voice-over narration, graphic depictions of violence and liberal use of profanity. These stylistic elements, first established in his breakout film Mean Streets (1973), served as a blueprint for much of his later work.
A career spanning decades of excellence (and controversy)
The documentary will likely cover Scorsese’s most celebrated works, including his Palme d’Or-winning Taxi Driver (1976), which starred Robert De Niro as a disturbed Vietnam veteran (“You lookin’ at me?”). His collaboration with De Niro proved to be one of cinema’s most fruitful partnerships, spanning films like New York, New York (1977), the boxing masterpiece Raging Bull (1980), The King of Comedy (1982), the crime epic Goodfellas (1990), Casino (1995), and the recent Netflix film The Irishman (2019).
In later decades, Scorsese found similar success collaborating with Leonardo DiCaprio on films including Gangs of New York (2002), The Aviator (2004), the Academy Award-winning The Departed (2006), Shutter Island (2010) and The Wolf of Wall Street (2013). The director’s range extends beyond crime dramas to include diverse works like After Hours (1985), The Color of Money (1986), the controversial The Last Temptation of Christ (1988), the period piece The Age of Innocence (1993), the Dalai Lama biography Kundun (1997), the family film Hugo (2011) and the spiritual epic Silence (2016).
Mr. Scorsese documentary series: Beyond feature films
Photo: Apple TV+
Scorsese’s influence extends beyond theatrical releases into television and documentary work. He has directed episodes for HBO series including Boardwalk Empire and Vinyl, as well as documentaries like Public Speaking and the Netflix series Pretend It’s a City. His rock documentaries, including The Last Waltz (1978), No Direction Home (2005) and Shine a Light (2008), showcase his passion for music and its intersection with cinema.
As a passionate advocate for film preservation, Scorsese has founded three nonprofit organizations: The Film Foundation in 1990, the World Cinema Foundation in 2007 and the African Film Heritage Project in 2017. They demonstrate his commitment to preserving cinematic heritage for future generations.
Production team, other Apple TV+ docs
Emmy Award-nominated trio Damon Cardasis, Cindy Tolan and Rebecca Miller serve as executive producers of Mr. Scorsese, alongside Rick Yorn, Christopher Donnelly and Julie Yorn. Ron Burkle produces, while Robert Fernandez and Patrick Walmsley serve as co-executive producers. Expanded Media and Round Films present the series in association with LBI Entertainment and Moxie Pictures.
Mr. Scorsese joins Apple TV+’s impressive slate of original documentaries, including the Emmy and Critics Choice Award-winning STILL: A Michael J. Fox Movie, the Emmy-nominated Selena Gomez: My Mind & Me, STEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 pieces and an upcoming untitled Fleetwood Mac documentary.
Watch Martin Scorsese’s work on Apple TV+
While you wait for the Mr. Scorsese documentary series, you can stream quite a lot of the man’s work on Apple TV+. It’s available by subscription for $9.99 with a seven-day free trial. You can also get it via any tier of the Apple One subscription bundle. Customers who buy a new iPhone, iPad, Apple TV, Mac or iPod touch can enjoy three months of Apple TV+ for free.
After launching in November 2019, “Apple TV+ became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world, and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have been honored with 471 wins and 2,090 award nominations and counting,” the service said.
Apple TV+ is home to more than 200 exclusive movies and TV shows (including breakout soccer comedy Ted Lasso). The service also offers documentaries, dramas, comedies, kids shows and more.
Source: Apple TV+, Wikipedia, Cult of Mac
