Martin Scorsese’s highly-anticipated The Irishman is currently filming and we were treated to the first set photos last month, featuring the legendary Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, who specifically came out of retirement for this movie. While the sight of Scorsese, De Niro and Pesci working together once again was amazing in every way, fans did not get to see Al Pacino in the first set photos. Now, the 77-year-old has finally joined the party and was seen filming with co-star, 74-year old De Niro. The two iconic actors have worked with each other on several occasions so no wonder they were both seen smiling and enjoying each other’s company in between the takes. Shockingly, its the first instance that Martin Scorsese and Al Pacino are working together despite having worked in the industry for decades. Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci have both worked with the famed director in classic movies like Raging Bull, Goodfellas, and Casino. De Niro is playing the titular role of The Irishman whereas Al Pacino will be portraying the role of Jimmy Hoffa, who worked as the President of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union and was also involved with organized crime.
Jimmy Hoffa mysteriously disappeared without a trace back in 1975 when he was 62 years old. The movie is based on a book titled, I Heard You Paint Houses, by Charles Brandt which came back in 2003. The book is about the lifelong accounts told by Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran himself over the course of 5 years Brandt spent interviewing him. Sheeran confessed to Brandt that he executed 25 mob hits and was also involved in the death of the infamous mob boss Jimmy Hoffa. However, the detectives who investigated the case back then, say otherwise. The Irishman is the first gangster movie being made by Scorsese in over a decade and will be told from the perspective of an older Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran, telling the audience about the mob hits he executed in his life that made him famous.
It was reported earlier that the actors will be heavily de-aged digitally in order to give the audience a more realistic experience. For this purpose, Scorsese has teamed up with George Lucas’ VFX company called Industrial Light and Magic. The company used the same digital effects on Brad Pitt in The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and will do the same in The Irishman so the characters will appear to be in their 30s in the flashback scenes. Currently, The Irishman doesn’t have an official release date but given that the CGI de-aging effects are in play, we may not see the movie in near future. As we wait for further set photos and news to come, check out Al Pacino as Jimmy Hoffa in all his glory and stay tuned for more and latest Hollywood news.
