‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ casting directors Ellen Lewis and Rene Haynes on Lily Gladstone: ‘A gift to all of us’ [Exclusive Video Interview]

Casting director Ellen Lewis has worked with Martin Scorsese for more than 30 years, dating back to his segment of “New York Stories” and “Goodfellas.” Casting director Rene Haynes is known for her experience with Native American and First Nation actors, having cast indigenous performers in such major projects as “The Revenant,” “Yellowstone,” “Prey,” and “Twilight: New Moon.”

So perhaps it was a little bit of fate – and their previous relationship from working together on the Emmy-nominated limited series “Godless” – that made them the perfect duo to cast Scorsese’s epic new film “Killers of the Flower Moon.”

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“When I heard the possibility that Marty was going to be doing ‘Killers of the Flower Moon,’ I’d actually already read the book, which I thought was an amazing book. And I contacted Rene right away and said, ‘It looks like this might be happening,’” Lewis tells Gold Derby in an exclusive video interview.

SEEMartin Scorsese on ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’: ‘We had to take the script and rip it inside out’

Together, Lewis and Haynes are responsible for casting the dozens of parts in “Flower Moon,” many of which are filled by first-time actors like Tommy Schultz, who was found during a major open casting call in 2019 in Oklahoma. 

“He came through the open call and had such an amazing face,” Haynes recalls. “I was like, ‘Oh, Ellen has to see him.’ And he has one of the great roles in the film,” Haynes says of Schultz, who stars as a small-time crook who goes toe-to-toe with Leonardo DiCaprio’s Ernest Burkhart.

But when it came time to cast Mollie Kyle, the film’s female lead and a character both Scorsese and DiCaprio have described as the “heart and soul” of the story, Lewis and Haynes went with an actress who had a little more experience: Lily Gladstone.

“I’ve known Lily since the beginning of her career. I cast her in one of her first films [‘Winter in the Blood’] and she has a quiet dignity. And she doesn’t have to speak. And when I read the script, this is an essence of Molly,” Haynes says. “That is so integral to the story and to the character. And Lily was somebody that immediately came to mind.”

Lewis says she was familiar with Gladstone’s performance in Kelly Reichardt’s “Certain Women” and while there were other “wonderful actresses” considered for the part of Mollie, Gladstone stood out.

SEE‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ will be a double digit Oscar contender

“To have such a gifted, amazing actress like Lily Gladstone [play the part] – she is the heart and soul of the film,” Lewis says. “Her chemistry with Leo, I mean, it’s heartbreaking and it’s so beautiful and deep. Lily’s a gift to all of us.”

Due to the pandemic, Scorsese, DiCaprio, and Gladstone weren’t even afforded the chance to read scenes together in the same room. But even over video conference, it was apparent to the longtime collaborators that Gladstone was the right fit, Lewis says.

“Marty and Leo both felt just very confident after that reading that Lily was Molly,” Lewis says. Their shared instincts have paid off thus far: Gladstone was hailed in reviews after the “Killers of the Flower Moon” premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May, and she’s a top contender for Best Actress consideration in the Gold Derby odds.

“Marty is very open. And that’s the gift that I have of being able to work with him all these years, and all the different films that I’ve worked on,” Lewis adds. “To help him execute whatever his vision is – and for the people to be in the film and the world he created.”

“Killers of the Flower Moon” is out in theaters on October 20.

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