{
  "id": 10885700,
  "title": "20 years ago, 'The Departed' was Martin Scorsese's biggest success. It also almost broke him",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/30/20-years-ago-the-departed-was-martin-scorseses-biggest-success-it",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-09-30T07:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Tom's Guide",
    "slug": "tom-s-guide",
    "url": "https://www.tomsguide.com/entertainment/movies/20-years-ago-the-departed-was-martin-scorseses-biggest-success-it-also-almost-broke-him"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In 2006, Martin Scorsese's \"The Departed\" was his biggest success, grossing $292 million worldwide and winning four Oscars - Best Picture, Best Director, Best Film Editing, and Best Adapted Screenplay. The crime thriller, a remake of the Hong Kong film \"Infernal Affairs,\" is an exhilarating cat-and-mouse story about cops, criminals, and the moral dilemmas they face. Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon star as Costigan and Sullivan respectively, both entangled in a world of deception and loyalty.\n\nThough originally starring Brad Pitt, DiCaprio was eventually cast after Pitt turned down the role, believing he was too old. The film, originally a $100 million project, features an A-list cast including Nicholson, Damon, Mark Wahlberg, Alec Baldwin, Vera Farmiga, and Martin Sheen. It's a gritty, Catholic-themed film that explores guilt and nihilism, with the \"X\" motif to foreshadow character deaths.\n\n\"The Departed\" is Scorsese's make-up Oscar, a film that broke him mentally and made him distrust major studios. Despite the Oscar win, only Damon received an Oscar nomination for his performance. Scorsese's desire for a sequel was quashed by Warner Bros., who pushed for a survival of either Sullivan or Costigan. The film's ending still surprises viewers, even after multiple viewings.",
  "summary": "Martin Scorsese's Oscar-winning crime film was the last film of a different era",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}