Paul Schrader believes that Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver was overlooked at the 1977 Academy Awards because of its “controversial” content. The 79-year-old screenwriter, who penned the script for the Robert De Niro-led crime noir, shared his thoughts in a recent interview with Deadline marking the film’s 50th anniversary.
A Cult Classic Snubbed
Released in 1976, Taxi Driver stars De Niro as Travis Bickle, a disturbed insomniac who becomes a New York City cab driver and becomes obsessed with rescuing a 12-year-old prostitute named Iris, played by Jodie Foster. The film earned four Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, but Schrader and Scorsese were notably absent from the Best Original Screenplay and Best Director categories. The top prize went to John G. Avildsen’s Rocky.
“I wasn’t a bit thrown that Taxi Driver did not win,” Schrader said. “If you look at that category of Original Screenplay, it probably was the most original screenplay of that year, but it was just too controversial.”
Columbia Pictures Surprised by Success
Schrader revealed that Columbia Pictures was taken aback by the film’s performance. “They had written it off as an outlier and that’s why they didn’t market test it or put marketing behind it.” Despite this, Taxi Driver was both a critical and commercial hit, grossing $27.6 million worldwide. Schrader described the script as “one of those scripts that banged around town where everybody said someone else should make it, but not us.”
Oscars as a ‘Beauty Contest’
The screenwriter dismissed the Oscars as a “beauty contest,” recalling a conversation with Scorsese about the director’s own Oscar snubs. “I said, ‘Marty, if your priority is to get an Oscar, you need some f***ing new priorities. Because the depths you have to sink to, to prioritize that award, it’s not worth it.’”
Harvey Keitel’s Casting Controversy
Schrader also discussed the casting of Harvey Keitel as Sport, Iris’s pimp. The filmmakers were pressured to make the character white to avoid potential riots. “They said we would have a riot in the theater if he appeared to be a racist who only kills Black people,” Schrader explained. “That was fine with Marty, who wanted to give Harvey Keitel the lead, until everybody realized Bob was much better for it.”
Schrader made his directorial debut in 1978 with Blue Collar, starring Keitel. Now 87, Keitel remains known for his role in Taxi Driver.
