Here are the clues, my friends, and each bit is more wonderful than the next.
We’ve got a yet-to-be-named Vegas Casino Drama coming to television, first of all, and for this alone I’m amped.
This specific sub-genre has never quite been nailed. In fact, most fall into the category of not that good (see: Las Vegas, CSI: Las Vegas, et al). Title aside, I’d argue the best to date was the simply named Vegas, which had the legendary Nicholas Pileggi as part of its creative team and a cast that included Dennis Quaid as the good guy sheriff and Michael Chiklis as the charismatic bad guy mobster.
Then we get to the next level, which is the involvement of Brian Koppelman and David Levien, who are serving as showrunners for the new show. These are the guys who have already delivered classic flicks (Rounders), quirky gems (Knockaround Guys), and more recently the super fun and expertly executed Showtime show, Billions.
This information alone would be plenty enough to gain my interest. But then we get the involvement of the legendary Martin Scorsese as executive producer on the project.
You know, the guy who wrote and directed Casino. And Goodfellas.
Both were based on non-fiction books written by Pileggi, as an aside.
Scorsese is also slated to direct the pilot episode
Scorsese’s IMDB profile is crammed with upcoming work, and one item notes that he is slated to direct the Untitled Vegas Casino Drama.
This has happened before a number of times, including for the opulent and epic pilot for Boardwalk Empire and the high-octane coke-fueled first episode of the sadly short-lived Vinyl.
If nothing else, Scorsese’s close involvement from the jump will help to set the mood and tone for the entire series.
What else do we know?
Via Deadline, we know that the series will take place in modern day Las Vegas, and focus on “Robert ‘Bobby Red’ Redman, president of the hottest hotel casino in town, who has to make some long odds moves to try and secure his position and take more ground.”
That bit of information can’t help but remind us of Robert De Niro’s character, Sam “Ace” Rothstein, from Casino, who took on a similar role at the height of his powers.
And… that’s really it. The casting will obviously be critical, particularly for Bobby Red. Would it be crazy to think that Koppelman and Levien would turn to the redheaded co-star of Billions for the part, the great Damien Lewis?
What should we do while we wait to learn more?
Speculate away as we’re doing here, of course. Also: follow Brian Koppelman on social media, who is full of fun advice, opinions, and memories from a long career working in show business.
Koppelman also coined the term for one’s first cup of coffee of the day as The Royale. If you’re a coffee drinker, you’ll appreciate right away that the designation lends the act of drinking the first cup of coffee in the morning with the import and dusting of pizazz that it deserves.