Martin Scorsese Net Worth

What is Martin Scorsese's Net Worth and Salary?

Martin Scorsese is an American director, writer, and producer who has a net worth of $200 million. Martin Scorsese is widely regarded as one of the greatest living American filmmakers. Scorsese's notable films include "The Irishman," "The Wolf of Wall Street," "The Departed," "Aviator," "Gangs of New York," "Casino," "Goodfellas," and "Raging Bull." He won the 2007 Academy Award for Best Directing in 2007 for "The Departed." As of this writing, Martin Scorsese's films have grossed more than $2 billion at the worldwide box office. Because many of his movies are classics, he has generated hundreds of millions more from royalties through syndication and licensing deals.

Born in 1942 in New York City, Scorsese's early life in Little Italy profoundly influenced his cinematic voice. His neighborhood's vibrant tapestry of life, with its dark undercurrents of organized crime and ethnic tensions, would later find its way into many of his films. After a brief period considering the priesthood, Scorsese chose the world of cinema, studying at NYU's Tisch School of the Arts.

His breakthrough came with "Mean Streets" (1973), a film that introduced audiences to his unique style and his frequent collaborator, Robert De Niro. Their partnership would birth classics such as "Taxi Driver" (1976), where De Niro's portrayal of the disturbed Travis Bickle left an indelible mark on film history, and "Raging Bull" (1980), a raw and poignant look at the life of boxer Jake LaMotta.

However, Scorsese's oeuvre is not limited to crime dramas. He showcased his versatility with the passionate "The Last Temptation of Christ" (1988), the opulent "The Age of Innocence" (1993), and the contemplative "Kundun" (1997). "The Departed" (2006) finally won him a long-overdue Academy Award for Best Director.

Scorsese has also been a staunch advocate for film preservation, understanding the medium's importance in cultural memory. Through The Film Foundation, which he co-founded in 1990, countless classic films have been restored and preserved for future generations.

Early Life

Martin Charles Scorsese was born on November 17, 1942, in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens, New York City. His family later moved to Little Italy in Manhattan, where his parents—Charles, a clothes presser and occasional actor, and Catherine, a seamstress and actress—immersed him in a working-class Italian-American community that would deeply influence his later films.

As a child, Scorsese suffered from severe asthma, which prevented him from playing sports or spending much time outdoors. Instead, he found refuge in movie theaters. His parents and older brother often took him to screenings, sparking an early obsession with film. He later credited his illness with giving him the solitude and focus to absorb cinema in a way that became his "first real education."

Career Beginnings

Scorsese attended Cardinal Hayes High School in the Bronx and briefly studied at a seminary with hopes of becoming a priest before realizing his true calling lay in film. He enrolled at New York University, earning a Bachelor's degree in English in 1964 and an M.F.A. in film from the university's School of the Arts (now Tisch) in 1968.

During his graduate years, he directed several acclaimed student films, including "What's a Nice Girl Like You Doing in a Place Like This?" (1963) and "The Big Shave" (1967). His first feature, "Who's That Knocking at My Door" (1967), introduced recurring collaborators Harvey Keitel and editor Thelma Schoonmaker, and marked the beginning of his fascination with Catholic guilt, violence, and redemption.

Breakthrough and Critical Acclaim

Scorsese's breakthrough came with "Mean Streets" (1973), a semi-autobiographical tale of loyalty and crime set in Little Italy. The film premiered at the New York Film Festival and launched his long and fruitful collaboration with Robert De Niro. It was followed by "Taxi Driver" (1976), a haunting portrait of urban alienation that won the Palme d'Or at Cannes and earned four Oscar nominations.

He cemented his reputation with "Raging Bull" (1980), the brutal biopic of boxer Jake LaMotta, which garnered eight Oscar nominations and is frequently cited as one of the greatest films ever made. Despite critical acclaim, Scorsese struggled with addiction and commercial pressures during this period, but his artistry only deepened.

(Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images) 

Commercial Expansion

In the mid-1980s, Scorsese found new footing with "The Color of Money" (1986), a sequel to "The Hustler" that earned Paul Newman his first Oscar. He continued to expand his range with the dark comedy "After Hours" (1985), the controversial "The Last Temptation of Christ" (1988), and the gangster classic "GoodFellas" (1990), often hailed as a modern masterpiece of American cinema.

The 1990s also saw "Cape Fear" (1991) and "Casino" (1995), both of which paired Scorsese's kinetic style with psychological intensity. "Casino" in particular cemented his dominance in the crime genre and reunited De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Sharon Stone in a sweeping Las Vegas epic.

21st-Century Reinvention

Entering the 2000s, Scorsese began a new creative chapter through a lasting collaboration with Leonardo DiCaprio. Together they made "Gangs of New York" (2002), "The Aviator" (2004), "The Departed" (2006), "Shutter Island" (2010), and "The Wolf of Wall Street" (2013). "The Departed" finally earned Scorsese his long-awaited Academy Award for Best Director after decades of nominations.

He continued to innovate with "Hugo" (2011), his first 3D film, which paid tribute to early cinema, and "The Irishman" (2019), a Netflix-backed epic that used groundbreaking de-aging technology to revisit his favorite themes of loyalty, regret, and mortality.

Recent Work and Continuing Legacy

In 2023, Scorsese released "Killers of the Flower Moon," an adaptation of David Grann's true-crime book about the Osage murders in 1920s Oklahoma. Starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Robert De Niro, and Lily Gladstone, the film was nominated for multiple Academy Awards and reaffirmed his reputation for ambitious, morally complex storytelling well into his 80s.

Beyond feature films, Scorsese has directed acclaimed documentaries such as "No Direction Home: Bob Dylan" (2005), "Shine a Light" (2008), "George Harrison: Living in the Material World" (2011), and "Rolling Thunder Revue" (2019), blending his lifelong passion for music with his documentary craftsmanship.

He also founded The Film Foundation in 1990, a nonprofit organization devoted to film preservation that has restored hundreds of classic films worldwide.

Awards and Recognition

Scorsese has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director nine times and has received more than 130 major awards overall. His accolades include an Oscar, multiple Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and Directors Guild of America Awards, as well as the AFI Life Achievement Award and the BAFTA Fellowship.

He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2003 and has been honored by the Kennedy Center and the Vatican for his contributions to film and culture.

Personal Life

Scorsese has been married five times. His first marriage to Laraine Marie Brennan (1965–1971) produced one daughter. He later married writer Julia Cameron (1976–1977), with whom he has a daughter, followed by actress Isabella Rossellini (1979–1983) and producer Barbara De Fina (1985–1991). Since 1999, he has been married to Helen Schermerhorn Morris, and they share a daughter.

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