Martin Scorsese has won the Academy Award for Best Director only once among his numerous nominations. Although nearly all of his films landed nominations in different categories over the years, the Awards in the main categories have been proportionately low. Despite the awards evading him most of the time, the Goodfellas director has built an impressive portfolio of cinematic masterpieces.
Martin Scorsese’s latest addition to that list is Killers of the Flower Moon, which is based on the book of the same name by David Grann. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Lily Gladstone, and Robert De Niro. Interestingly, Scorsese has also missed out on some exceptional movies.
Martin Scorsese Was Set To Direct Schindler’s List In The Late ‘80s
Martin Scorsese appeared in a recent interview with Deadline to promote his latest film, Killers of the Flower Moon, which is set to hit theaters this month. During this discussion, The Aviator director was asked about his missed project, Schindler’s List. The film, directed by Steven Spielberg, won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. Scorsese was once attached to the project as its director.
In the interview, Scorsese revealed his sincere interest in the film and his commitment to staying true to the story. He even hired Steven Zaillian, to work on the script with him. Notably, Zaillian won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for the film. As Scorsese recalled, Steven Spielberg had the project in mind since the time they met at Cannes in 1975. When Spielberg finally invited the Hugo director to helm the project, Scorsese was excited.
However, Scorsese eventually recognized that it would not be appropriate for him, as a devout Catholic, to recount the story of the Jewish plight during the holocaust. He compared the situation with The Diary of Anne Frank being authored by a non-Jewish writer. Further, The Wolf of Wall Street director felt that the E.T. director, with his Jewish heritage, was the right person for the job.
Martin Scorsese Felt That His Version Would Have Never Won The Oscar
The interviewer noted that Schindler’s List changed Spielberg’s career and asked Scorsese how he felt about passing on the movie. The Taxi Driver director revealed that his vision for the film was entirely different from what the Jaws director delivered. Scorsese even went on to admit that his rendition wouldn’t have achieved the level of success that Schindler’s List attained. He highlighted that his films never win at the Oscars. Scorsese told Deadline:
“But I guarantee you, if I did it, it would not have been the hit that it became. It may have been good, that I can tell you. I had some ideas. Most of it’s there. I had a different ending. I admired the film greatly. But I know that my films just don’t go there. They don’t go to the Academy.”
Martin Scorsese chose to work on The Last Temptation of Christ instead of Schindler’s List. Scorsese received a Best Director nomination for this controversial film at the Oscars that year. While the 80-year-old director has directed some great movies after The Departed in 2006, he has since not won any major awards at the Oscars. Killers of the Flower Moon is expected to break this pattern and win the much-needed accolades for the director at the next Oscars.
Schindler’s List is now available for streaming on Paramount+.
Source: Deadline
