Writer-director Martin Scorsese is set to play Italian poet Dante Alighieri's mentor in Julian Schnabel's new crime film titled In the Hand of Dante. In the film, Scrosese's character influences Alighieri as the latter writes the poem 'The Divine Comedy'.

This is one of the few films where Scorsese will not play himself, and according to Schnabel, his role in the film is very important. Schnabel told Variety that "Scorsese is extraordinary in the film“ in "a brilliant, important role” and that “you can’t take your eyes off him.”

Scorsese played an unnamed role in his sophomore film Boxcar Bertha and an uncredited part in his breakthrough film Mean Streets, but his first real cameo in a feature-length film came in 1986's Round Midnight. This is also the second time Scorsese has been associated with a film about an artist, after his role as Vincent van Gogh in Japanese filmmaker Akira Kurosawa's Dreams.

In the Hand of Dante is based on Nick Tosches' book of the same name, which is centred around a manuscript of Alighieri’s poem. The film also sees Scorsese collaborating with Al Pacino, the star of his last directorial The Irishman. The film also stars Oscar Isaac, Jason Momoa, Gal Gadot, and Gerard Butler.