Killers of the Flower Moon: Release date, cast, plot for Leonardo DiCaprio thriller

The film marks the seventh collaboration between Scorcese and DiCaprio

Lily Gladstone and Leonardo DiCaprio in a scene from Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon.
Lily Gladstone and Leonardo DiCaprio in a scene from Martin Scorsese's Killers of the Flower Moon. (Apple)

He may be 80 years old but filmmaking icon Martin Scorsese is showing no signs of slowing, with his latest movie, Killers of the Flower Moon, due for release in select cinemas on 20 October.

Written by Forrest Gump screenwriter Eric Roth, Scorsese’s latest is based on the 2017 book Killers of the Flower Moon: The Osage Murders and the Birth of the FBI by author David Grann.

As the novel’s title suggests, the story follows a series of grisly murders among a Midwestern Native American tribe in Oklahoma after oil was discovered on their land in the 1920s.

Read more: The Scorsese comedy that was ahead of its time

Bringing his story to life is an all-star cast boasting the likes of Robert DeNiro, Jesse Plemons and Brendan Fraser with long-time Scorsese collaborator Leonardo DiCaprio leading the way. The film marks the star’s seventh collaboration with the Raging Bull filmmaker and their first since 2013’s The Wolf of Wall Street a decade ago.

Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio in Killers of the Flower Moon. (Apple TV+)
Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio in Killers of the Flower Moon. (Apple TV+)

With production wrapping in October 2021, fans have had to wait quite a while to see what Scorsese has cooked up. Later this year, all will be revealed when the film debuts on Apple TV+.

In the meantime, here’s everything we know about Killers of the Flower Moon.

Killers of the Flower Moon release date

Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple TV+)
Killers of the Flower Moon (Apple TV+)

Scorsese’s latest is due for release in UK cinemas from 20 October with a streaming release on Apple TV+ to follow.

The film has also been confirmed for an IMAX release on the same date.

Killers of the Flower Moon trailer

"Can you find the wolves in this picture?" After spending what felt like an eternity in production secrecy, the first teaser trailer for Killers of the Flower Moon dropped in mid-May, giving us our first glimpse at Scorcese's latest.

As a steady beat hits home the tension between white settlers and members of the Osage, which rises to unknown heights and leads to blood being spilled. Watch it above.

A new, more action-packed trailer was released by Apple in July 2023. Watch it below.

Killers of the Flower Moon cast

Robert De Niro and Jesse Plemons in Killers of the Flower Moon. (Apple TV+)
Robert De Niro and Jesse Plemons in Killers of the Flower Moon. (Apple TV+)

Scorsese isn’t pulling any punches with his latest cast list, with Killers of the Flower Moon featuring a wide array of starry names on its call sheet.

Leading the way is DiCaprio as Ernest Burkhart, the man responsible — and later convicted for — conspiring to murder many of the Osage community members.

He’ll be joined by Robert De Niro as William Hale, a cattleman and fellow convicted murderer, and Jesse Plemons as Tom White, the man responsible for cracking the case.

Rounding out the film’s cast is Lily Gladstone as Burkhart’s suspicious wife Mollie, Brendan Fraser as lawyer W.S. Hamilton and John Lithgow as Prosecutor Leaward.

Canadian actor Tantoo Cardinal also stars alongside a trio of musicians including Jack White, Sturgill Simpson and Jason Isbell.

Lily Gladstone and Martin Scorsese Killers of the Flower Moon. (Apple TV+)
Lily Gladstone and Martin Scorsese Killers of the Flower Moon. (Apple TV+)

Killers of the Flower Moon plot

A copy of the best-selling 'Killers of the Flower Moon' by David Grann.
A copy of the best-selling 'Killers of the Flower Moon' by David Grann. (Photo by Robert Alexander/Getty Images)

As chronicled in author and journalist Grann’s book, Killers of the Flower Moon tells the story of a series of brutal killings among the Osage Native American tribe throughout the 1920s.

Taking place across a five-year period, members of this Oklahoma-based community were murdered after oil was discovered on their land. Entitled to profit shares under United States law, the Osage people were due to receive large sums of money before a plot was formed to kill them off one by one.

(Original Caption) Fiendish
Photo shows three of the Native Americans who met death in suspicious circumstances in Osage County: Henry Roan, Lizzie Q., and Charles Whitehorn. (Getty)

According to Grann’s book, at least 20 members of the Osage Nation were murdered, with the author suggesting that the actual number could span into the hundreds due to various other people's connections to these high-value oil profits.

Read more: Decisions the Oscars got wrong

According to the movie’s official logline, Scorsese will also look at the FBI’s role in investigating these murders and their link back to the bureau’s former director J. Edgar Hoover.

This is what we know. However, with a confirmed run-time of three hours and 20 minutes, we’re sure Scorsese has plenty more packed into his new feature film that we’re still unaware of.

Killers of the Flower Moon will be released in cinemas and IMAX from 20 October, with an Apple TV+ release to follow.