The experience of shooting The Departed wasn't peaches and cream for Mark Wahlberg. His hair even caused tension between him and Martin Scorsese.
During an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, Wahlberg reflected on the 2006 film. Right before The Departed, Wahlberg starred in Four Brothers and had Invincible on the horizon.
At the time, Scorsese had a contract with Warner Bros and the stars including Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson, Alec Baldwin, and Matt Damon. However, Wahlberg, who was only supposed to be there for five weeks or so, had to shoot Invincible, which required hair extensions. This caused some issues on the Scorsese set.
“I was supposed to be in and out in five weeks,” Wahlberg recalled. “So I went off to go and shoot Invincible, got my hair extensions, came back, and then they were like, ‘Oh, you [have] got to take out the extensions.' I was like, ‘S**t took eight hours, I'm not taking these out.'”
He acknowledged that there were “a couple of issues,” but Staff Sergeant Sean Dignam was a great role for him.
And at the end of the day, The Departed landed Wahlberg his only acting Oscar nomination to date. He did land another nomination for Best Picture for The Fighter. However, that was due to him being a producer on the film.
The Departed is a classic Martin Scorsese crime film. It follows an Irish mob boss, Frank Costello (Nicholson), who plants a spy within the Massachusetts Police. At the same time, the police plant a rat within Costello's crew.
The film was a huge hit. It grossed nearly $300 million worldwide at the box office. The film was up for five Oscars, winning four (including Best Picture). Wahlberg was the lone loser for the film, missing out on Best Supporting Actress.
Mark Wahlberg's career
Mark Wahlberg is one of the biggest stars in Hollywood. He first gained notoriety for his part in Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. As an actor, he made his debut in Renaissance Man in 1994. He then starred in the likes of Fear and Boogie Nights.
The early 2000s were the prime of Wahlberg's career. He starred in The Perfect Storm, Planet of the Apes, and The Italian Job. Wahlberg then began taking more comedic roles in the 2010s including The Other Guys, Ted (and its sequel), and the Daddy's Home series.
Some of Wahlberg's other franchise roles include leading Transformers: Age of Extinction and The Last Knight. He has also starred in Mile 22, Instant Family, Spenser Confidential, Infinite, and Uncharted.
Over the last couple of years, Wahlberg has varied his role choices. He has starred in dramas like Father Stu and Joe Bell but also starred in comedies such as Me Time and The Family Plan (which is also an action film).
His latest film, Arthur the King, tells the real-life story of Mikael Lindnord. The Family Plan director Simon Cellan Jones re-teamed with Wahlberg for the film, marking their second collaboration. The Family Plan 2 is also in the works.
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