Martin Scorsese Wants to Cast Leonardo DiCaprio as Frank Sinatra in New Biopic

The director reportedly wants Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence for the Sinatra biopic

Leonardo DiCaprio and Frank Sinatra. Credit :Leonardo DiCaprio may be stepping into major shoes for his next role.

Variety reported April 17 that director Martin Scorsese, 81, is planning to make a biopic about Frank Sinatra after he makes his movie about Jesus.

The outlet cited sources who said DiCaprio, 49, would play the iconic singer-actor in the film, with Jennifer Lawrence also eyed as Sinatra’s second wife Ava Gardner.

DiCaprio and Lawrence, 33, costarred with each other in 2021’s Don’t Look Up.

Variety reported that Sinatra’s daughter Tina, 75, holds control over Frank’s estate and has not yet approved of the project.

Reps for DiCaprio, Scorsese and Lawrence did not respond to PEOPLE’s requests for comment.

Jennifer Lawrence and Ava Gardner.
Sinatra, who died in 1998 at age 82, was known for his vast success throughout the 20th century.

His movies include 1962’s The Manchurian Candidate and the lead role in 1960’s original Ocean’s Eleven, and his beloved songs include “My Way” and “New York, New York.”

The singer was married four times.

He divorced his first wife Nancy Barbato in 1951 before marrying actress Gardner (who died in 1990 at 67) later that same year.

Gardner and Sinatra’s marriage did not last and ended in divorce in 1957.

Sinatra later was married to Mia Farrow, then Barbara Marx in 1976.

He remained with Marx until his death.

Should the project come to fruition, it would mark DiCaprio and Scorsese’s seventh film together.

They most recently collaborated on 2023’s Killers of the Flower Moon.

DiCaprio described both Scorsese and his costar Robert De Niro as “like cinematic father figures to me” during a press conference for the film in November 2023.

Martin Scorsese and Leonardo DiCaprio on April 27, 2023.

Variety also reported that Scorsese is looking to cast Andrew Garfield and Miles Teller in his movie about Jesus, though it noted it’s unclear what role either actor would play.

Scorsese initially revealed he intended to make the movie in May 2023 shortly after meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican.

In January, Scorsese told the Los Angeles Times he planned to shoot the film, based on the late Japanese author Shūsaku Endō’s novel A Life of Jesus, in 2024.

At the time, he said he plans for the film to be set in present day and run for around 80 minutes.

“I’m trying to find a new way to make it more accessible and take away the negative onus of what has been associated with organized religion,” Scorsese previously said.