Cape Fear Stars Reveals How Involved Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg Were in New Apple TV Thriller

Hollywood rights are a tricky thing, and they’ve only gotten more complicated over the years. One of the most unique ones, though, happened not too long ago, when filmmakers Steven Spielberg and Martin Scorsese completely traded the projects they were working on. At the start of the ’90s, Spielberg had been developing a remake of J. Lee Thompson’s 1962 movie Cape Fear, but decided it was too violent, and instead offered it to his pal, Martin Scorsese, in exchange for a project he had just decided to shelve, Schindler’s List. The rest is history, but the story has not ended there.

This week, Apple TV will officially roll out the first episodes of a television remake of Cape Fear, which lists both Spielberg and Scorsese as executive producers. Though this title is largely a vanity one across Hollywood, we couldn’t help but wonder what level of involvement the two had in the development and making of the series. Speaking with ComicBook in an interview, we asked the cast if the pair showed up on set. Star Lily Collias confirmed that while they never visited set, “We would hear trickling of what they would respond to within the episodes, which was exciting.”

Cape Fear Cast Confirm Spielberg and Scorsese Involvement in Apple Series

Joe Anders, who plays an all-new character in the Cape Fear series, elaborated even more about the involvement of the two Oscar winners, revealing that while they certainly were involved, the pair really wanted the team to make the series their own, adding:

“I think they were very connected to the whole process of everything, but I think they also gave the people working on the episodes and all of the individual directors and Nick (Antosca, creator and showrunner), they stood back and gave them the space to make the show that they wanted to make, I think. So they were kind of in a little sort of back room watching everything and reporting back, but we didn’t really have too much face-to-face connection with either of them.”

To their credit, it makes sense why both Spielberg and Scorsese would offer feedback (their names are on the series after all) but also why they wouldn’t want to have too heavy of a hand in it. Every iteration of Cape Fear that has come about, all of which are based on the novel The Executioners by John D. MacDonald, has been rooted in the time it was made.

The 1962 movie starred the iconic Gregory Peck and Robert Mitchum, and was pretty shocking for the time it was released despite minimal on-screen violence. The ’91 version with Robert De Niro and Nick Nolte had an even more sinister tone, added complexity to the family dynamic, and an actual depiction of violence. So far, reviews for the Apple TV series indicate that the new version has done well to make a name for itself as well, not only updating to add extra complexity to the Bowden family (Tom’s Wife Anna is now also an attorney, putting her directly in the plot as well) but with Javier Bardem’s take on the sinister Max Cady standing apart from the others that came before him.

Cape Fear‘s first two episodes premiere on Apple TV this Friday.

Javier Bardem Scores His Third Iconic Villain Masterclass in Apple TV’s Cape Fear Remake [Review]