Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci Reunite in Irishman Set Photos

Martin Scorsese, Robert De Niro, and Joe Pesci reunite in new set photos captured during the shooting of The Irishman. Based on a book by Charles Brandt, The Irishman traces the life of real-life reputed mob hitman Frank Sheeran (De Niro), who among other things claimed to have been involved in the 1975 disappearance of Teamsters boss Jimmy Hoffa, a mystery that to this day remains unsolved (despite outrageous claims like his body being buried under the old Giants Stadium). Al Pacino is set to make his Scorsese debut playing Hoffa.

The Irishman marks Martin Scorsese’s return to gangster film territory, and he’s recruited a cast that includes many of his former long-time collaborators, including De Niro, Pesci and Harvey Keitel. De Niro and Pesci became known as one of cinema’s great teams through their appearances together in Scorsese’s Raging Bull, Goodfellas and Casino. Neither actor has worked with Scorsese since 1995’s Casino, and Pesci has been retired since 2010’s Love Ranch save for a voice appearance in 2015’s A Warrior’s Tale.

New photos captured on the set of The Irishman in New York (via Chris Evangelista) give fans a glimpse of a reunited Scorsese, De Niro and Pesci. One particularly amusing image sees Scorsese apparently scrutinizing Pesci’s face while Pesci breaks out in a grin. Another shot shows Scorsese pointing at a car while apparently giving Pesci direction. A shot of De Niro shows the actor exiting a car, possibly during the filming of a shot. The costumes, cars and set dressing indicate that the scenes are set in the ’60s or ’70s.

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Having De Niro and Pesci back together again, along with Harvey Keitel, gives The Irishman the feeling of a career summation for the 74-year-old Scorsese. However, that doesn’t mean The Irishman will just be a throw-back to Scorsese’s other gangster films. In fact, Scorsese has said he’s tackling The Irishman in a different way to his mobster classics Goodfellas and Casino.

In order to tell the decades-spanning story of The Irishman, Scorsese intends to use de-aging CGI on lead actor Robert De Niro. The extra money added to the budget by the use of CGI made big studios shy away from the project, but Netflix ultimately stepped in and agreed to produce. De Niro has said that without Netflix and their willingness to take on projects the big studios no longer tackle, the film would not have gotten made at all.

The Irishman also stars Jack Huston, Bobby Canna, ale and Ray Romano. The movie is set to be released in 2019.