Showbiz 411‘s Roger Friedman was apparently under an impression that Martin Scorsese‘s Silence might not be released during award season. I’ve been figuring all along that it has to come out by at least December…c’mon. Friedman reported today that Scorsese told him a day or so ago that Silence‘s release situation “depends on Paramount,” but that a firm date is yet to come.

Scorsese told Friedman that “he’ll be done with scoring in October, and regular people will start to see the movie then.” I for one would be delighted if Silence takes the surprise screening slot at the 2016 New York Film Festival (i.e., sometime between Sunday, 10.9 and Wednesday 10.12), even if it’s not fully finished by that point.

Friedman’s conclusion: “So throw Silence into the ring with Birth of a Nation, Rules Don’t Apply, Queen of Katwe, Sully, The Founder, Fences and a bunch of other films no one’s seen yet (like La-La Land, and so on). Why not? So far in 2016, on August 4th, we otherwise have zilch in our checkout basket for the Academy Awards. Nothing like waiting until the last minute.”

“Zilch”? Kenneth Lonergan‘s Manchester By The Sea and The Birth of a Nation are Best Picture locks. But not so fast regarding The Founder, Sully, Rules Don’t Apply, Queen of Katwe and Lah-Lah Land.