Robert De Niro Mob Movie Gets Significant Change
Like so many other films in Hollywood, Robert De Niro’s latest mob movie is facing a huge shift in release date, and that’s not all. Previously titled The Wise Guys, The Hollywood Reporter reveals that the project is now going by the name Alto Knights.
As for its new premiere, audiences who were excited to catch it on February 2, 2024, will now need to wait a full nine months before it drops on November 15, 2024.
Alto Knights Is A Mob Story
Hailing from Academy Award-winning director Barry Levinson (Rain Man), Alto Knights is set to tell a classic mobster story about the real-life rivalry between top bosses, Frank Costello and Vito Genovese.
Along with Robert De Niro, Will & Grace’s Debra Messing and A Bronx Tale’s Kathrine Narducci will also star. The movie marked a historic moment as it’s the first title to have been given the go-ahead at Warner Bros. Discovery following the staff switch-up in 2022.
The Godfather II Launched Robert De Niro’s Career
Known for his background in mafia-centered films, it should come as a surprise to absolutely no one that Robert De Niro was cast in Alto Knights.
While he appeared in a handful of projects early in his career, it was his appearance in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Part II as a young Vito Corleone that launched the actor to a prominent space in the biz, even earning him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor.
Taxi Driver And Raging Bull
Going on to appear in iconic films such as Taxi Driver and Raging Bull, Robert De Niro’s bread and butter would always be in the stories of big cities and the mobsters who used to run them.
From Once Upon a Time in America, to The Untouchables, Goodfellas and The Irishman, the award-winning star has never met a mafioso role that he couldn’t seamlessly slip into.
A Bronx Tale
In 1993, Robert De Niro challenged himself to go the extra mile by not only starring in a mobster flick but also directing it. That was with A Bronx’s Tale.
Starring alongside Chazz Palminteri, Joe Pesci, and his Alto Knights co-star Kathrine Narducci, De Niro played out a story of a man torn between the fast-paced life of crime and the moral dilemma that came with his other life as a family man.
The film was a success for audiences and critics and would be the only film De Niro has directed aside from 2006’s The Good Shepherd.
A Different Role In Joker
Although we love Robert De Niro in a good cutthroat gang-centered production, we’d be remiss to not mention his talent in the comedy department.
Of course, the actor shines in a drama such as Joker but it’s his roles in movies like the Meet the Parents franchise and Dirty Grandpa that prove he’s a well-rounded performer.
The Strike And Alto Knights
As for other titles facing the same fate as Robert De Niro’s Alto Knights, the recently sorted-out writers’ strike and ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike have caused a bump in Hollywood that’s starting to trickle down to films set for 2024 and 2025 releases.
Other highly-anticipated productions including Beetlejuice 2, Gladiator 2, Twisters, the live-action How to Train Your Dragon, and shows including Wednesday Season 2 have also been suspended due to the strike.
