Martin Scorsese to direct 'Gangs Of New York' TV series

Martin Scorsese is turning his feature "Gangs of New York" into a TV series with Miramax Television backing the project. The show will be based on Herbert Asbury's 1927 non-fiction book "The Gangs of New York", which was also the source material for the 2002 movie.

According to entertainment website Deadline, Scorsese will serve as an executive producer on the project and also direct the first two episodes.

The series will be penned by Brett Leonard, known for his work on show "Shantaram".


It is said to be a new take on the story with new characters that were not featured in the movie, which starred Leonardo DiCaprio, Daniel Day-Lewis and Cameron Diaz.

Asbury's book focuses on the confrontations between rival gangs in New York in the mid to late 1800s, prior to the domination of the Italian-American Mafia during Prohibition in the 1920s.