Martin Scorsese says he only has a couple of films left in his directorial career

Last Updated on August 2, 2021

Martin Scorsese is 71 years old, but from the looks of the trailer for THE WOLF OF WALL STREET he is still at the top of his game. But, like anybody who is getting older, Scorsese cannot direct forever. At some point the guy is going to have to slow down and eventually stop. While that is going to be a sad day, we will still have plenty to enjoy in the meantime. Or, maybe not.

In a recent Q&A at the Marrakech Film Festival, Martin Scorsese was asked various questions regarding working with Robert De Niro again, his string of movies with Leonardo DiCaprio, making SILENCE his next film, and more. One intriguing question posed to the filmmaker was about what future projects he has the desire to make.

Desire? Yes, I have the desire to make many films, but as of now I’m 71 and there’s only a couple more left if I get to make them. I miss the time when I had the desire to experiment and try different kinds of films, I miss that time, but that’s done, it’s over. There is obligation as you get older, you have family. I’ve been very lucky in the last 10 years or so, to have found projects that combine the desire, the subject matter—from “The Aviator” to now—with, as best I can, fulfilling the obligation to my family and the financiers.

Now, everyone from Stephen King to Steven Soderbergh has talked about retiring when what they actually mean is slowing down. Neither of those men is in their 70s, but the message is the same. Does he mean he only envisions directing a couple of more movies and that is it or does he mean he only has a couple left on his bucket list that he hasn’t made yet. Either way, if Scorsese makes a movie every few years, we would at most be getting five films before he turns 80. We should be grateful to have gotten as many fantastic films as we have, but whether it be one, two, or five more, each remaining Martin Scorsese movie will be a must see.

THE WOLF OF WALL STREET opens Christmas Day.