Just being a Martin Scorsese movie would make Killers of the Flower Moon one of the most anticipated new movies of 2023. But seeing the famed director reteam with not one but two of his all-time favorite collaborators — Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio — means Killers of the Flower Moon is a movie that you are definitely not going to want to miss.
The buzz around Killers of the Flower Moon has been around for a while, but 2023 is finally going to bring Scorsese's latest project to movie fans everywhere after a four-year wait from his last movie, 2019's The Irishman.
Here is everything that we know about Killers of the Flower Moon.
How to watch Killers of the Flower Moon
Find out how to watch Killers of the Flower Moon here, but in a nutshell the Martin Scorsese movie is now available to stream on Apple TV Plus or rent via other digital on-demand platforms.
Killers of the Flower Moon plot
Killers of the Flower Moon is based on the best-selling book by David Grann. Here is the official plot synopsis from Apple:
"Killers of the Flower Moon is set in 1920s Oklahoma and depicts 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."
Scorsese and Eric Roth (Dune, Forrest Gump) are credited as co-writers of the script.
The full title of Grann's book is Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI. You can also get some additional backstory on the history of the events depicted in Killers of the Flower Moon with the free PBS documentary Osage Murders.
Killers of the Flower Moon cast
To no one's surprise, Killers of the Flower Moon has a bunch of big names attached as part of its cast, but no two are bigger than frequent Scorsese collaborators Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio.
DiCaprio is set to play Ernset Burkhart, the patriarch of a family at the center of the murders taking place. DiCaprio has worked with Scorsese five times, in Gangs of New York, The Aviator, The Departed, Shutter Island and The Wolf of Wall Street.
Beating that number though is Robert De Niro, who has starred in nine Scorsese movies: Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, New York, New York, Raging Bull, The King of Comedy, Goodfellas, Cape Fear, Casino and The Irishman. De Niro has also acted with DiCaprio a couple of times in This Boy's Life and Marvin's Room. In Killers of the Flower Moon, De Niro is playing the character of William Hale.
Other high-profile members of the cast include Lily Gladstone (Certain Women) as Mollie Burkhart, Jesse Plemons (The Power of the Dog) as FBI agent Tom White, John Lithgow (The Old Man) as Prosectuor Leaward and Brendan Fraser (The Whale) as W.S. Hamilton.
Here are additional members of the Killers of the Flower Moon cast:
- Tantoo Cardinal (Three Pines) as Lizzie Q
- Cara Jade Myers (Rutherford Falls) as Anna Kyle Brown
- JaNae Collins (Reservation Dogs) as Rita
- Jillian Dion (Alaska Daily) as Minnie
- William Belleau (The English) as Henry Roan
- Louis Cancelmi (Billions) as Keslie Morrison
- Tatanka Means (Reservation Dogs) as John Wren
- Michael Abbott Jr. (Fear the Walking Dead) as Frank Smith
- Pat Healy (Station 19) as John Burger
- Scott Shepherd (The Last of Us) as Bryan Burkhart
- Jason Isbell (Billions) as Bill Smith
- Sturgill Simpson (The Dead Don't Die) as Henry Grammer
Killers of the Flower Moon reviews
In What to Watch's rave Killers of the Flower Moon review, we call Martin Scorsese's latest both a deeply important movie and one that at the same time is immensely entertaining.
We're not alone in praising the movie, as it is "Certified Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes with a score of 93% as of November 30.
Killers of the Flower Moon awards
Here is a roundup of the major awards that Killers of the Flower Moon was been nominated for and/or won:
Oscars
- Best Picture (nominee)
- Best Director — Martin Scorsese (nominee)
- Best Actress — Lily Gladstone (nominee)
- Best Supporting Actor — Robert De Niro (nominee)
- Best Cinematography (nominee)
- Best Costume Design (nominee)
- Best Editing (nominee)
- Best Production Design (nominee)
- Best Score (nominee)
- Best Original Song — "Wahzhazhe (A Song for My People)" (nominee)
BAFTA Film Awards
- Best Film (nominee)
- Best Supporting Actor — Robert De Niro (nominee)
- Best Casting (nominee)
- Best Cinematography (nominee)
- Best Editing (nominee)
- Best Costume Design (nominee)
- Best Make Up & Hair (nominee)
- Best Original Score (nominee)
- Best Production Design (nominee)
Golden Globes
- Best Motion Picture Drama (nominee)
- Best Performance by a Female Actor in a Motion Picture Drama — Lily Gladstone (winner)
- Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Motion Picture Drama — Leonardo DiCaprio (nominee)
- Best Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role in Any Motion Picture — Robert De Niro (nominee)
- Best Director — Martin Scorsese (nominee)
- Best Screenplay (nominee)
- Best Original Score (nominee)
American Film Institute
- Top 10 Motion Picture of the Year
Critics Choice Awards
- Best Picture (nominee)
- Best Actor — Leonardo DiCaprio (nominee)
- Best Actress — Lily Gladstone (nominee)
- Best Supporting Actor — Robert De Niro (nominee)
- Best Acting Ensemble (nominee)
- Best Director — Martin Scorsese (nominee)
- Best Adapted Screenplay (nominee)
- Best Cinematography (nominee)
- Best Production Design (nominee)
- Best Editing (nominee)
- Best Costume Design (nominee)
- Best Score (nominee)
London Critics' Circle Awards
- Film of the Year (nominee)
- Director of the Year — Martin Scorsese (nominee)
- Actress of the Year — Lily Gladstone (nominee)
- Technical Achievement Award — Film Editing (nominee)
Los Angeles Film Critics Awards
- Best Supporting Performance — Lily Gladstone (runner-up)
- Best Cinematography (runner-up)
National Board of Review
- Best Film (winner)
- Best Director — Martin Scorsese (winner)
- Best Actress — Lily Gladstone (winner)
- Outstanding Achievement in Cinematography (co-winner)
New York Film Critics Awards
- Best Film (winner)
- Best Actress — Lily Gladstone (winner)
- Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture (nominee)
- Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in Leading Role — Lily Gladstone (winner)
- Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role — Robert De Niro (nominee)
Killers of the Flower Moon trailer
The Killers of the Flower Moon trailer is finally here. Narration from Leonardo DiCaprio features prominently, as he begs the question, can you spot the wolves in this picture?
Another trailer for the latest Martin Scorsese movie was released on July 5, which pumps up the action a bit more and gives us our first look at some at the likes of Brendan Fraser, Jesse Plemons, Tantoo Cardinal and more. Watch the trailer right here:
You can also check out these additional trailers for the movie:
In addition, the clip below to has Scorsese, DiCaprio and Gladstone discussing the importance and meaning of the story:
Also check out these character breakdowns of DiCaprio's Ernest Burkhart, Gladstone's Mollie Burkhart and DeNiro's William King Hale:
How long is Killers of the Flower Moon?
Get ready, Killers of the Flower Moon is a long one (but it earns its runtime in our opinion). The movie has an official runtime of three hours and 26 minutes.
What is Killers of the Flower Moon rated?
Killers of the Flower Moon earned an R rating in the US for "violence, some grisly images and language." It is rated "15" in the UK.
Martin Scorsese movies
Martin Scorsese is one of the most revered directors in Hollywood history. The Oscar-winner has made numerous movies now considered classics over his more than 50 years behind the camera. Here is a complete rundown of all the feature, narrative movies he directed (but check out IMDb for all of the projects that he has had his hand in):
- Who's That Knocking at My Door (1967)
- Boxcar Bertha (1972)
- Mean Streets (1973)
- Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore (1974)
- Taxi Driver (1976)
- New York, New York (1977)
- Raging Bull (1980)
- The King of Comedy (1982)
- After Hours (1985)
- The Color of Money (1986)
- The Last Temptation of Christ (1988)
- Goodfellas (1990)
- Cape Fear (1991)
- The Age of Innocence (1993)
- Casino (1995)
- Kundun (1997)
- Bringing Out the Dead (1999)
- Gangs of New York (2002)
- The Aviator (2004)
- The Departed (2006)
- Shutter Island (2010)
- Hugo (2011)
- The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
- Silence (2016)
- The Irishman (2019)
