The two collaborated on many films such as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Killers of the Flower Moon, but there were two hits that the actor decided to reject.
Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese make up one of the most effective and beloved duos in American cinema. De Niro is one of Marty's favorite actors and together they have achieved great gems such as Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, Goodfellas, The King of Comedy, and more. Now, actor and director have reunited for Killers of the Flower Moon, a film that also includes Leonardo DiCaprio and will debut this year at the Cannes Festival.
The truth is that Scorsese and De Niro have collaborated on many occasions but they have also spent long periods without making films together. The director spoke about this in an interview with Deadline and specifically referred to two of his greatest hits in which he wanted De Niro in the cast but he refused to be a part: The Departed (2006) and Gangs of New York (2002).
Two rejections among so many collaborations
Regarding The Departed, Scorsese said: "We talked to Bob but he didn't want to do it. 'What about The Departed?' 'No... I don't want to do that.' I didn't work with Bob for 10 years until we made Goodfellas; we went in different directions. Then we made two or three more movies and then for 19 years, we didn't work together... So After Casino, we stopped for a while and I did Kundun, Lives on the Limit and Gangs of New York."
Scorsese had also proposed to De Niro to be part of Gangs of New York, which would star Daniel Day-Lewis, Cameron Diaz, and DiCaprio: "He wanted to do Analyze Me and I said 'We already did that. It was Goodfellas.' I talked to him about other projects and at one point he said, 'You know the kind of things I like to do with you,' and I said, 'OK.' That became The Irishman and it took nine years."
