Why Frank Sinatra’s Son Didn’t Want Mark Wahlberg Anywhere Near Martin Scorsese’s ‘Sinatra’ Biopic

Martin Scorsese planned to tackle late singer Frank Sinatra’s life in a biopic simply titled Sinatra. But Sinatra’s son shared there was one actor who he preferred wouldn’t be cast in the unmade picture.

Frank Sinatra’s son didn’t think Mark Wahlberg could pull off his father in Martin Scorsese’s biopic

Scorsese had been mulling over doing a Frank Sinatra biopic for quite some time. He’d even hired a screenwriter for the project, and had in mind the eras of Sinatra’s life he wanted to tackle. At the time, however, he was far away from picking an actor to play the artist. Although, according to The Guardian, Scorsese did have a couple of names in mind.

“My choice is Al Pacino, and Robert De Niro as Dean Martin,” Scorsese said.

In a resurfaced interview with Ok, Sinatra’s son, Frank Sinatra Jr., was asked about a couple of the names tied to the biopic. He gave his thoughts on actors like James Marsden and Scorsese’s frequent collaborator Leonardo DiCaprio. He seemed unsure, but slightly open, about the celebrities mentioned. But when Mark Wahlberg’s name came up, Sinatra Jr. made it clear he wasn’t a fan of The Departed star.

“Mark Wahlbegr, I would hope they would pass,” Sinatra Jr. said.

When asked why, Sinatra. Jr didn’t hold back his feelings.

“Because we need an actor,” he said.

Martin Scorsese’s ‘Sinatra’ was supposed to be like ‘Goodfellas’

Scorsese didn’t plan on covering the singer’s history entirely, but chose to focus on specific parts that shaped the legend. Structurally, Sinatra was supposed to resemble another classic Scorsese feature.

“In structure I’d like it to be more like GoodFellas,” Scorsese once told Shortlist (via MTV News). “But like The Aviator, it only deals with certain times in his life. We can’t go through the greatest hits of Sinatra’s life. We tried this already. Just can’t do it. So the other way to go is to have three or four different Sinatras. Younger. Older. Middle-aged. Very old. You cut back and forth in time – and you do it through the music.”

But at the time Scorsese admitted that doing a Sinatra film was an especially challenging endeavor due to the singer’s complexities.

“It’s very hard because here is a man who changed the entire image of the Italian-American,” Scorsese said. “And that’s just one thing. Along with his political work, civil rights, the Mob…”

It was speculated that Sinatra’s alleged ties to the mob would be further explored in the biopic. But this might’ve rubbed some members of Sinatra’s family the wrong way.

Frank Sinatra’s family wouldn’t let Martin Scorsese do the biopic

Scorsese asserted that if he did a Sinatra film, the picture wouldn’t be afraid to touch on the darker aspects of his history.

“Certain things are very difficult for a family, and I totally understand. But, if they expect me to be doing it, they can’t hold back certain things. The problem is that the man was so complex. Everybody is so complex — but Sinatra in particular,” Scorsese once told Toronto Sun.

But the film might’ve shown Sinatra in an angle that his relatives didn’t want the world to see. Eventually, they’d pull the plug on Scorsese’s Sinatra tribute, much to the Oscar-winner’s disappointment.

“We can’t do it,” Scorsese said. “I think it is finally over. They won’t agree to it. Open it up again and I’m there!”

Even years after the Sinatra debacle, Scorsese still considered the film the one that got away.

“I’m sad about the Sinatra one,” he told Variety in a 2017 interview.