Wise Men: Robert De Niro to play two rival mob bosses in one movie

Director Barry Levinson is banking on American comedian Robert De Niro to play the roles of Vito Genovese and Frank Costello.

Scheduled for an undisclosed date as production has yet to begin, Eggheads is a historical work that tells the story of Vito Genovese and Frank Costello, two Italian-Americans who led two separate crime families in the mid-20th century. Vito Genovese tried unsuccessfully to assassinate Frank Costello in 1957, but the latter ended up leaving the mob after being injured in an assassination attempt.

Robert De Niro to play for Warner Bros. mafia drama “Eggheads”directed by Barry Levinson https://t.co/rCGDUmhOcU

— Deadline in Hollywood (@DEADLINE) August 16, 2022

Robert De Niro’s new gangster movie with the Wise Guys

Far from being unknown on the subject, Robert De Niro will play the roles of Vito Genovese and Frank Costello in Warner Bros Discovery’s mafia drama The Wise Men, directed by Barry Levinson. The screenplay was written by Oscar-nominated Goodfellas screenwriter Nicholas Pileggi. Although he also wrote the book Wiseguy: Life in a Mafia Family, published in 1985, on which the Martin Scorsese film is based, it has nothing to do with the Barry Levinson film. Irvin Winkler of the Rocky franchise also joined the project as a producer.

The Wise Guys are reuniting the Robert De Niro and Barry Levinson duo on the big screen after collaborating on the Emmy-nominated HBO TV movie The Wizard of Lies, which starred RDN as Bernie Madoff, and the Magnolia Pictures comedy-drama What Just Happened in 2008. as well as the director’s older films Wag the Dog and Sleepers.