Which actor has appeared in the most Martin Scorsese movies?
Martin Scorsese is one of the most innovative directors of all time, but he’s also a creature of habit. His movies are often dominated by the same themes, including crime and masculinity, brought to life by a reliable roster of actors. Scorsese has built long-standing working relationships with some huge Hollywood names, including Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel, and Leonardo DiCaprio.
The latter has appeared in five of Scorsese’s feature films, beginning with Gangs of New York in 2002. The two haven’t worked together in a decade now, since DiCaprio received a ‘Best Actor’ nomination for The Wolf of Wall Street in 2013. Fans of the partnership won’t have to wait long to see them collaborate again, though, as Killers of the Flower Moon is just on the horizon.
The film will mark DiCaprio’s sixth movie with the celebrated director but still doesn’t quite earn him the title of most Scorsese appearances. Instead, that achievement goes to his Killers of the Flower Moon costar, Robert De Niro. The film will take De Niro and Scorsese’s collaborative relationship into the double digits, marking their tenth feature film together.
Scorsese and De Niro first worked together on Mean Streets in 1973, forging a firm partnership that would last for two decades. They went on to collaborate on the likes of the Palme d’Or-winning cult favourite Taxi Driver, gangster film GoodFellas, and crime epic Casino. The latter marked their last feature film together for 24 years.
While De Niro and Scorsese took a break from their cinematic collaboration, the actor recommended a replacement star. After working with DiCaprio on This Boy’s Life in 1993, De Niro saw something in DiCaprio. As Scorsese recalled during a Q&A at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, De Niro told him: “By the way, I’m working with this young kid. He’s really good. You should work with him sometime”. Scorsese simply replied, “OK”.
The director took the recommendation far more seriously than he let on, however. He cast DiCaprio in Gangs of New York after being stunned by his performance in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?. The two have since honed a reputation as one of the most important duos in modern cinema.
Nonetheless, De Niro still has DiCaprio beat when it comes to naming Scorsese’s most prolific collaborator. After a 24-year hiatus, the two returned to screens with The Irishman in 2019, which marked their ninth feature together. Both partnerships have become an essential part of Scorsese’s filmography.
Later this year, the release of Killers of the Flower Moon will mark the first time Scorsese’s two leads have appeared in the same feature film, following their collaboration on the comedy short The Audition in 2015. It’s a culmination of Scorsese’s iconic partnerships, sure to demonstrate why he keeps going back to them.
