Martin Scorsese has revisited one of Hollywood’s most intriguing unfinished projects, shedding new light on a historical film that once appeared to have an impressive creative team behind it. The director had plans to bring the story of ancient Egypt’s most famous queen to the screen, but the production never moved forward.
More than a decade later, Scorsese has recalled the circumstances surrounding the abandoned project, making an unexpected connection to the controversy involving Seth Rogen, James Franco and Sony Pictures’ 2014 cyberattack. His comments have also revealed just how ambitious his planned version of Cleopatra could have been.
Martin Scorsese recalls his abandoned Angelina Jolie ‘Cleopatra’ movie
Scorsese discussed the unrealised project during a conversation with his daughter, Francesca Scorsese, for Crafty, a Tribeca original series. The discussion touched on his interest in historical filmmaking and ambitious stories set in the ancient world, eventually bringing the conversation to Cleopatra.
The filmmaker confirmed that he had once been preparing to direct the movie, which was expected to feature Angelina Jolie in the lead role.
“We were gonna do Cleopatra at one point,” Scorsese recalled.
However, his explanation of why the project never happened took an unexpected turn towards the controversy surrounding The Interview, the 2014 comedy starring Seth Rogen and James Franco.
“We were gonna do Cleopatra at one point, and then they made fun of [Kim Jong Un], and he got mad and blew up everybody at Columbia,” Scorsese said. “Seth Rogen, right? And then he got mad, and [it] ruined Cleopatra.”
His remarks connected the film’s fate to the chain of events that followed the movie’s controversial premise and the subsequent Sony Pictures hack.
However, Scorsese’s comment should not be interpreted as an accusation that Rogen personally intervened to stop Cleopatra. The connection was to the wider disruption surrounding Sony and the confidential information exposed during the cyberattack.
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Angelina Jolie was set to play Cleopatra VII
One of the biggest revelations from Scorsese’s recollection was the specific role Jolie had been preparing to take on.
The actress was not simply being considered for an unspecified historical character. Scorsese confirmed that she was expected to portray Cleopatra VII, the historical ruler of Ptolemaic Egypt.
“We were gonna do it. Angelina Jolie. We were going. She was gonna be Cleopatra VII. It was gonna be really wild,” he said.
Jolie’s involvement was already part of the project’s lengthy development history. Sony had been developing a major Cleopatra film for years, with the actress attached to the leading role and several prominent filmmakers becoming connected to discussions about directing it.
Her proposed casting attracted considerable attention, particularly because the production was intended to bring the story of Cleopatra VII to a major screen adaptation.
Scorsese’s latest comments clarify that his version had reached a serious stage of development, with Jolie expected to lead the film. Nevertheless, the project never entered production, and no completed Scorsese-directed film starring Jolie as Cleopatra exists.
Eric Roth was writing Martin Scorsese’s ‘Cleopatra’ screenplay
Jolie’s casting was not the only significant creative detail behind Scorsese’s abandoned project. Screenwriter Eric Roth was also attached to write the screenplay.
The involvement of Roth makes the unrealised film particularly interesting when viewed alongside the filmmaker’s later work together.
Roth subsequently collaborated with Scorsese on Killers of the Flower Moon, the director’s 2023 historical crime drama starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro and Lily Gladstone.
Their work on that film represented a later collaboration between the filmmaker and screenwriter, following the earlier Cleopatra development discussions.
Scorsese’s recollection suggests that the proposed historical epic had moved beyond a casual conversation about potentially working together. There were identifiable creative plans involving its director, leading actress and screenwriter.
However, it is important to distinguish serious development from an actual production. Although Jolie was expected to play Cleopatra VII and Roth was attached to the screenplay, the movie never reached filming.
How Seth Rogen’s ‘The Interview’ became connected to the Sony hack
The connection Scorsese made to Rogen dates back to The Interview, the 2014 comedy directed by Rogen and Evan Goldberg and starring Rogen alongside James Franco.
The film centred on a fictional television programme and an assassination plot targeting North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Its premise provoked a strong response from North Korea, turning the production into the centre of an escalating international dispute.
In November 2014, Sony Pictures Entertainment suffered a major cyberattack. The attackers, identifying themselves as the Guardians of Peace, stole and released substantial amounts of confidential studio information.
The breach exposed internal emails, corporate documents, employee information and private discussions that were never intended for public release.
The FBI subsequently concluded that North Korea was responsible for the attack. Its assessment relied on technical evidence, including similarities between the malware and infrastructure used during the Sony intrusion and earlier cyber activity attributed to North Korea.
The US Department of Justice later took action against North Korean regime-backed individuals in connection with a broader cyber campaign that included the Sony attack.
The incident became one of Hollywood’s most prominent cybersecurity controversies, affecting the studio and bringing previously private entertainment-industry discussions into the public domain.
Sony’s leaked emails exposed tensions surrounding Angelina Jolie’s ‘Cleopatra’
Among the confidential material released during the cyberattack were emails involving producer Scott Rudin and then-Sony Pictures executive Amy Pascal.
The correspondence included discussions about Jolie, Cleopatra and the search for a director.
The leaked messages revealed that Jolie had been interested in having David Fincher direct the film. Scorsese was also among the filmmakers connected to discussions surrounding the project.
The correspondence additionally exposed tensions between Jolie and some Sony executives. Rudin made highly critical private comments about the actress in emails that subsequently became public following the breach.
Those remarks were not intended as public statements, but their release became part of the wider controversy surrounding the Sony hack.
The emails also provide important context for understanding why the film’s development cannot be reduced to a single incident.
The project was already experiencing complicated development discussions, including disagreements and changes in its creative direction, before Scorsese’s latest retrospective comments.
Although the director has now connected the Sony controversy to the loss of his version of Cleopatra, the available information does not establish the cyberattack as the sole reason the broader project failed to progress.
David Fincher was also connected to the long-running ‘Cleopatra’ project
The Jolie-led Cleopatra went through several stages of development, with different filmmakers considered or attached over the years.
David Fincher was one of the prominent directors associated with the project. Jolie was reportedly interested in working with him, while Scorsese was also discussed in connection with the film.
The 2014 email leak brought some of these private conversations into public view, revealing the complicated creative discussions taking place behind the scenes.
Scorsese’s latest recollection specifically concerns the version in which he was preparing to direct Jolie as Cleopatra VII, with Roth attached to write the screenplay.
That distinction matters because the broader Sony project and Scorsese’s particular creative plans were part of a longer development history. The film experienced changes in its creative team and internal disagreements, and the version Scorsese describes ultimately remained unrealised.
What happened to ‘The Interview’ after the 2014 Sony cyberattack?
The consequences of the Sony breach extended beyond confidential studio correspondence and the Cleopatra project.
Following the attack, the controversy surrounding The Interview intensified. Threats were made against theatres planning to screen the film, prompting major US cinema chains to withdraw from the planned theatrical release.
Sony eventually abandoned the original Christmas Day theatrical rollout. However, the studio subsequently made the movie available through alternative distribution channels.
On December 19, 2014, the FBI publicly attributed the cyberattack to North Korea.
The incident became a significant example of a cyberattack directly affecting a major Hollywood studio and its film-distribution plans.
This wider disruption provides the historical context for Scorsese’s remarks. His reference to Rogen was connected to the controversy surrounding the comedy and the events that followed, rather than evidence of a personal dispute between the two filmmakers.
Martin Scorsese and Seth Rogen later worked together on ‘The Studio’
There is another interesting detail surrounding Scorsese’s comments about Rogen.
Despite jokingly connecting the fallout from The Interview to the collapse of Cleopatra, Scorsese and Rogen later worked together on Apple TV+’s The Studio.
Scorsese appeared as himself in the series, while Rogen co-created and starred in the Hollywood comedy.
Their later professional collaboration offers additional context for understanding the director’s remarks. There is no indication from the available information of an ongoing personal dispute between the two over the abandoned historical film.
Instead, Rogen’s involvement in The Interview provides the historical connection Scorsese was recalling during his conversation with Francesca.
Is Angelina Jolie’s ‘Cleopatra’ movie with Martin Scorsese returning?
Despite renewed attention surrounding Scorsese’s comments, there has been no announcement that he and Jolie are reviving their version of Cleopatra.
His conversation was retrospective, with the filmmaker recalling a project he had intended to make rather than revealing plans for a new production.
There is also no indication that Roth is returning to write another version of the screenplay or that Sony has restarted the Scorsese-Jolie project.
The film remains particularly interesting because of the creative talent associated with its development. Jolie as Cleopatra VII, Scorsese directing and Roth writing represented a major combination, but the project never reached cameras.
Scorsese’s description of the proposed film as “really wild” also reflects how ambitious the opportunity appeared to him.
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Conclusion
Martin Scorsese’s latest recollection has provided a rare glimpse into what could have become a major historical film starring Angelina Jolie as Cleopatra VII. With Eric Roth attached to write the screenplay, the project had a significant creative team, but its complicated development history and the disruption surrounding Sony’s 2014 cyberattack became part of its story.
Although Scorsese connected the film’s collapse to the fallout from The Interview, the cyberattack has not been independently established as the sole reason the broader project failed.
More than a decade later, the planned movie remains unrealised, with no confirmed revival involving Scorsese, Jolie or Roth.
Source and Research Disclaimer: This article has been prepared based on research of the sources provided below, including published reporting, historical coverage of the Sony Pictures cyberattack and official statements from US authorities. Details reflect the information available in those sources and the filmmaker’s reported comments. No independent verification beyond the supplied source material is implied.
Sources
- Variety: Martin Scorsese Says His ‘Cleopatra’ Movie With Angelina Jolie Was ‘Ruined’ by Seth Rogen and the Sony Hack
- Entertainment Weekly: Martin Scorsese blames Seth Rogen for his ‘Cleopatra’ movie being ‘ruined’
- The Indian Express: Sony email hack reveals producer’s remarks on Angelina Jolie
- FBI: Update on Sony Investigation
- US Department of Justice: North Korean Regime-Backed Programmer Charged With Conspiracy to Conduct Multiple Cyber Attacks and Intrusions
- The Guardian: Sony hack and The Interview timeline
- The Washington Post: US attributes Sony attack to North Korea
Featured Image Credit: Harald Krichel / CC BY-SA 4.0 / Wikimedia Commons
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