How Martin Scorsese Shaped the Future: A Legacy Timeline

A closer look at the lasting mark left by Martin Scorsese—a timeline of influence.

Martin Scorsese is a highly acclaimed American filmmaker, a key figure in the New Hollywood era. His distinguished career is marked by numerous awards, including an Academy Award, BAFTA Awards, Emmy Awards, a Grammy Award, and Golden Globe Awards. He has received prestigious lifetime achievement honors from organizations like the AFI, Film Society of Lincoln Center, Kennedy Center, and BAFTA. Four of his films have been recognized for their cultural, historical, and aesthetic importance and inducted into the National Film Registry.

Sections (4)

Full Timeline Career & Achievements Success & Recognition Legacy & Impact

1917: Sam Mendes praises Martin Scorsese

In his acceptance speech after winning the 2020 Golden Globe Award for Best Director for 1917, Sam Mendes praised Scorsese's contribution to cinema.

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1997: AFI ranks Raging Bull as 24th greatest American film

In 1997, the American Film Institute ranked Raging Bull as the twenty-fourth greatest American film of all time on their AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies list.

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1998: American Film Institute's list of the greatest American movies

In 1998, the American Film Institute placed three Scorsese films on their list of the greatest American movies: Raging Bull at No. 24, Taxi Driver at No. 47, and Goodfellas at No. 94.

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2001: American Film Institute's list of the most "heart-pounding movies"

In 2001, the American Film Institute placed two Scorsese films on their list of the most "heart-pounding movies" in American cinema: Taxi Driver at No. 22 and Raging Bull at No. 51.

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2007: AFI Ranks Goodfellas

In 2007, the American Film Institute moved Goodfellas up to No. 92 on the AFI's 100 Years... 100 Movies list (10th Anniversary Edition).

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2007: AFI ranks Raging Bull as 4th greatest American film

In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked Raging Bull as the fourth greatest American film on their AFI's 100 Years ... 100 Movies (10th Anniversary Edition) list.

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June 17, 2008: AFI's 10 Top 10 list

On June 17, 2008, the American Film Institute placed two of Scorsese's films on the AFI's 10 Top 10 list: Raging Bull at number one for the Sports genre and Goodfellas at number two for the Gangster genre.

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2013: Mean Streets Voted Seventh Greatest Film

In 2013, the staff of Entertainment Weekly voted Mean Streets the seventh greatest film ever made.

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2016: The Wolf of Wall Street ranked among the 100 greatest motion pictures since 2000

In a 2016 critics' poll conducted by the BBC, The Wolf of Wall Street was ranked among the 100 greatest motion pictures since 2000.

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2019: Guillermo del Toro compares Scorsese's character development to Renoir, Bresson, Bergman, Oliveira or Kurosawa

In commenting on Scorsese's 2019 film The Irishman, Guillermo del Toro cited Scorsese's ability as a director for the depiction of character development comparable to the films of "Renoir, Bresson, Bergman, Oliveira or Kurosawa".

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November 2020: Scorsese hounored with Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award

In November 2020, Martin Scorsese was hounored with Stockholm Lifetime Achievement Award.

2020: Bong Joon-ho quotes Scorsese

In his acceptance speech for the 2020 Academy Award for Best Director for Parasite, Bong Joon-ho quoted Scorsese, which prompted the audience to give Scorsese a standing ovation.

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2021: Films selected for preservation in the National Film Registry

As of 2021, four of Martin Scorsese's films (Mean Streets, Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Goodfellas) have been selected by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry for being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".

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2021: Martin Scorsese Institute of Global Cinematic Arts established at NYU

In 2021, lifelong friend George Lucas and his wife Mellody Hobson through the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation made a donation to NYU to establish the Martin Scorsese Institute of Global Cinematic Arts.