Killers of the Flower Moon screenwriter Eric Roth has spoken about Martin Scorsese's upcoming Western, promising something we haven't seen on screen before.
"I think it'll be like nothing we've ever seen, in a way," Roth said in an interview with Collider. "And so this one is, to me, one for the ages."
Based on the best-selling book of the same name, the movie is set in '20s Oklahoma and follows the serial murder of members of the oil-wealthy Osage Nation, a string of brutal crimes that came to be known as the Reign of Terror.
The movie stars Jesse Plemons, Leonardo DiCaprio, Lily Gladstone, and Robert De Niro. Plemons will play Tom White, the lead FBI agent investigating the murders – a character that was originally going to be played by DiCaprio before he stepped back into his current role, the nephew of a powerful local rancher (De Niro) who is married to an Osage (Gladstone). Roth, however, argues that contrary to rumors surrounding the casting decision, Plemons and DiCaprio are on equal footing in the movie.
"I wouldn't say [Plemons is] the lead," Roth added. "I would say that he was the designated hero. But yeah, I think that's fairer because I think the parts are pretty equal and they were always equal to a certain extent, and Leo's part is very complicated and very interesting. It's a smart part for a smart actor to play."
Roth is an Academy Award-winning screenwriter, penning a number of critically acclaimed movies including Forrest Gump, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, and A Star is Born.
