Why Did Scorsese Walk Away from a Studio After a Film Became an IMDb Sensation?

What does it take for a director at the zenith of Hollywood fame to break ties with a major studio? Apparently, more than a shelf full of Oscars, a cult following, and the kind of box office receipts that would make your accountant sweat. Imagine being Martin Scorsese—yes, the guy who basically taught a generation to fear cab drivers and Wall Street brokers alike—facing off with Warner Bros. over the soul of The Departed. It makes you wonder: at what point do relentless creativity and big studio ambitions become two trains careening toward each other? I’ve always admired how Scorsese stubbornly marches to the beat of his own drum, even if it means pulling the plug on a lucrative partnership. For anyone who believes that cinematic endings should be as bold as the stories themselves (and not just set up for a tired sequel), this is peak behind-the-curtain drama—no popcorn required. Ready for a closer look at how an auteur walked away from Hollywood’s conveyor belt dreams? LEARN MORE.

Martin Scorsese reportedly stopped working with Warner Bros after a disagreement regarding the direction of one of his most popular films.

The veteran filmmaker is the brains behind some of the biggest films of the past 50 years, including Taxi Driver, The Wolf of Wall Street and Goodfellas.

Considered one of the best directors in modern Hollywood, Scorsese’s films are typically hits with both critics and commercial audiences, which you’d think would make him a darling of production studios worldwide.

However the 82-year-old hasn’t always seen eye-to-eye with the titans of the industry, as shown by a disagreement between himself and Warner Bros regarding the direction for one of his most successful films.

Back in 2006, Warner Bros would release its final collaboration with Scorsese, crime thriller classic, The Departed.

Martin Scorsese is one of the greats of modern cinema (Daniele Venturelli/Getty Images)

With an all-star cast including Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson, and Mark Whalberg, to name a few, The Departed is loosely based off of the real-life Boston Winter Hill Gang, and follows the story of the story of Billy Costigan (DiCaprio) and Colin Sullivan (Damon), who are acting as moles within the Irish Mob and the Boston Police Department respectively.

The Departed would go on to scoop up four Oscars, including Scorsese’s only ‘Best Director’ win, and sits with a near-perfect score on both Rotten Tomatoes and IMDb.

Despite all the praise, there was one issue with the film’s production.

The tale ends with the deaths of both Damon and DiCaprio’s characters, perfectly tying up the entire story, which is something that Warner Bros weren’t too keen on, as they fancied the prospect of turning the film into a franchise.

This idea didn’t sit well with The Irishman director, who told GQ back in 2023 the demand was a point of contention between both parties.

“What they wanted was a franchise. It wasn’t about a moral issue of a person living or dying,” he explained.

However Warner Bros were reportedly not happy with the ending for The Departed (Warner Bros)

Despite a test screening of the film proving to be a major hit, Scorsese went on to add: “The studio guys walked out and they were very sad, because they just didn’t want that movie.

“They wanted the franchise. Which means: I can’t work here anymore.”

The Departed would go on to be Scorsese’s final project with Warner Bros, with subsequent projects such as Shutter Island and Killers of the Flower Moon created alongside either Paramount Pictures, Netflix or Apple TV+.

Thankfully for Scorsese, none of the production companies appear to have broached the topic of a franchise with him, the type of approach that the director once famously compared to ‘theme parks’.