Scorsese to take 'Gangs of New York' to the small screen

Martin Scorsese is due to go even further back in time with a Gangs of New York-inspired TV series. The Oscar-winning director of the 2002 film will be working with Miramax to deliver a show which, according to IndieWire, will expand upon the world created in Gangs of New York. The film, which is set in the nineteenth century, was primarily based on Herbert Asbury’s 1928 book The Gangs of New York: An Informal History of the Underworld. Although this volume stuck to Five Points in New York City, Asbury also wrote extensive chronicles about the flourishing crime scenes in Chicago, New Orleans and San Francisco. Perhaps this version of the tale will span the length and breadth of the entire USA, considering there is still a lot of untapped potential in Asbury’s writings. At the moment, everything is still very much in the early stages of development. It’s not even clear which network will take the series, although there us a good chance HBO is top of Scorsese’s list. Another big question is whether the series will feature the same colorful characters as the film? It would be pretty good to see Bill The Butcher and Boss Tweed again, although I’m pretty sure Daniel Day-Lewis is unlikely to return.