Mark Wahlberg recalls why he was 'a little pissed' while filming 'The Departed' with Martin Scorsese
Mark Wahlberg revealed that he was "a little pissed" while filming his Academy Award-winning movie "The Departed" due to disagreements with the crime thriller's director, Martin Scorsese.
The 52-year-old actor starred alongside stars like Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson and Alec Baldwin in the 2006 film helmed by the 82-year-old legendary filmmaker.
Wahlberg played Staff Sergeant Sean Dignam, an officer in the Massachusetts Police's Special Investigation Unit who recruits trainee Billy Costigan (DiCaprio) to infiltrate the mob in order to discover the identity of a mole in the police department.
"I was a little pissed about a couple of things," Wahlberg admitted while appearing on the "Happy Sad Confused" podcast last week.
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"Originally, I was supposed to play another part," he told podcast host Josh Horowitz.
"We agreed that I would play Dignam," Wahlberg said of his conversations with Scorsese. "And I saw the advantages of playing that part and how I would approach the situation with everybody playing opposite me."
However, a scheduling conflict and a hair dispute arose as Wahlberg had signed on to star in the biographical sports drama "Invincible" after shooting "The Departed." In "Invincible," Wahlberg portrayed the real-life Philadelphia Eagles player Vince Papale.
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The role required him to grow out his hair so that he would more closely resemble Vitale at the time period in which the movie was set.
"I was going into ‘Invincible’ after I was trying to grow my hair out, which is why I had that weird hair," he explained. "Everybody's like, ‘What was that wig about? I was like, ’It was not a wig. I was just trying to grow my hair for the next film.'"
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He continued, "And I was supposed to be in and out in five weeks. So I went off to go and shoot ‘Invincible,’ got my hair extensions, came back. And then they were like, ‘You gotta take out the extensions.’"
"I was like, ‘S--- took eight hours, I’m not taking them out,'" the "Ted" star recalled. "So we had a couple of issues but ultimately when I read that particular role, I was like, ‘OK, this is a good role. This is an opportunity for me to really kind of go off and have some fun.’"
Wahlberg told Horowitz that he understood "where Marty was coming from."
"He had to deal with Jack, he had to deal with Matt and Leo and Alec and everything — the studio and everyone else that was in the cast," he explained.
Ultimately, Wahlberg and Scorsese worked out their differences, and the actor was glad that he took on the role of Dignam.
"For me, originally, I was just thinking, 'OK, we got to make this as realistic and credible as possible. It's Boston, it's gangster s---. You don't see too many of that — those movies."
"And I was thinking kind of broad, big picture, not necessarily my own individual goals or even the opportunity for me as an actor," he added. "And then when I read the part again, I was like, 'Oh, there's there's something here."
Wahlberg was nominated for the best supporting actor Oscar for his performance in "The Departed." The nomination remains his only Academy Award nod to date. The film won Scorsese his first Academy Award for best director after receiving five previous nominations.
"The Departed" also won best picture, best film editing and best adapted screenplay writing for a total of four wins out of seven nominations.