Paul Schrader Discusses Abandoned Film Xtreme City

Director Paul Schrader recently revealed insights regarding his abandoned film project 'Xtreme City', which was meant to feature Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, with Martin Scorsese as executive producer. The project, conceived during the 2011 Berlin Film Festival, ultimately fell apart due to Khan's reluctance to take on a subordinate role to DiCaprio, a position he had never held in his career. Schrader noted that Khan's commitment began to wane as he realized the implications of working under an auteur, which began to 'grate on him'. Despite initial enthusiasm, including meetings in Berlin, the project's momentum faded, and Khan's interest diminished. The film's plot would have involved Khan as a gangster confronted by DiCaprio's character, an American police officer, after a life-saving incident in India. Schrader's reflections highlight the complexities of star dynamics in filmmaking and the challenges of cross-cultural collaborations.