Kaylah Walton
Robert De Niro firmly declined the opportunity to collaborate with Martin Scorsese on a gangster film. Specifically, he turned down the chance to be part of The Departed, the film that would later earn Scorsese an Oscar for Best Director, 17 years prior.
Scorsese shared with Deadline, “We had discussions with Bob (De Niro) regarding the film, but he wasn’t interested.” Despite their long-standing professional relationship that includes iconic movies like Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and The King of Comedy, as well as crime dramas like Mean Streets, Goodfellas, Casino, and The Irishman, De Niro opted out for this particular project.
Reflecting on this, Scorsese noted, “There are several actors I wished to team up with over the years, but the industry dynamic doesn’t always align. I’ve been fortunate with talents like Paul Newman and Tom Cruise; everything fell into place. Yet with De Niro, there were 10 years without collaboration until we reunited for Goodfellas. After a few more projects, we had another long hiatus of 19 years. Meanwhile, I also worked with Daniel Day-Lewis and longed to work with Jack Nicholson for years.”
Collaboration Dynamics between Scorsese and De Niro
Concerning De Niro, he elaborated: “I discussed a few other projects with him, and he made it clear, ‘You know the kinds of roles I like with you.’ I responded, ‘Sure.’ That led to The Irishman, which took us nine years to realize. We were continuously brainstorming, including The Departed, to which he again said, ‘No, I don’t want to do that.’ ‘Alright then.’”
