“We need an actor”: when Frank Sinatra’s family brutally shut down Mark Wahlberg
Martin Scorsese’s name has been attached to many projects over the years, with some going into production and some being abandoned entirely after a short-lived buzz, quickly moving onto something else. Whilst some of these productions have been completely deserted, there is one idea that keeps coming back for Scorsese, with continuous discussions on production dates and casting plans for a biopic on legendary singer Frank Sinatra.
Scorsese has expressed a keen interest in completing this project. Despite no recent development on the film, the director has hired a screenwriter and started creating a loose storyline around key areas in the singer’s life that he wants to explore. Whilst no actors have been attached to the project, a few names have been thrown around, and Sinatra’s remaining family has not met all of them enthusiastically.
When asked about who he wanted to play Sinatra himself, Scorsese revealed that his top choices were Al Pacino and Robert De Niro as Dean Martin, with Leonardo DiCaprio also being floated around as an option. So, the usual ‘avengers assemble’ for Scorsese. However, when Frank Sinatra Jr was asked about some of the talent associated with the project, he was less keen on one person in particular.
Mark Wahlberg is arguably most celebrated for his role as Dirk Diggler, despite his public comments about “praying for forgiveness” after playing the tragic porn star in Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1997 film Boogie Nights. After initially starting out as a rapper and model, otherwise known as ‘Marky Mark’, Wahlberg had his first on-screen appearance alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in Basketball Diaries, shortly followed by his career-defining performance in Boogie Nights and The Departed.
However, when Frank Sinatra Jr was asked how he would feel if Wahlberg played his father, he made it clear that he was not a fan, saying, “Mark Wahlberg, I would hope they would pass”. When asked to elaborate on his thoughts, he replied, “Because we need an actor”.
Despite a number of hugely successful films, Wahlberg’s experience and commitment to acting has been questioned by other actors, with DiCaprio famously being unsure of him being cast in Basketball Diaries and expressing concern over working with someone who came from a background in modelling. As well as this, his comments about Boogie Nights show a reluctance to star in certain projects, with the actor making it clear that he didn’t approve of the story. However, many other actors would kill for the opportunity to work with Paul Thomas Anderson, who is one of the most talented directors working today.
After many conversations on the proposed casting for Scorsese’s dream biopic, no further decisions have been made. However, Scorsese has discussed his creative plans for the project and the idea to approach the story in a similar way to his 1990 film Goodfellas, with a non-linear timeline that weaves through different periods of his life to create an expansive overview of the complicated singer. The project was scrapped in 2017, with Scorsese still lamenting over what could’ve been and his grand plans for the film. However, who knows whether the fruits of his labour will come to fruition, and maybe we’ll see development for the biopic in the years to come.
