A 'Departed' Reunion, But No Sequel or Prequel?

It's no secret that Martin Scorsese likes his gangster flicks -- and judging from box office numbers, best-of lists and Academy Awards shoveled out, something tells me moviegoers like them just as much. Ever since The Departed won Oscars, folks questioned whether Scorsese and his crew would ever attempt either a prequel or a sequel (especially since the film it's based on, Infernal Affairs, was part of a trilogy). While that's looking less and less likely, word out of Boston is Marty might want to return to the city to once again adapt the true-life story of a dangerous mobster for the big screen.

According to the Boston Herald, Scorsese secretly met with Winter Hill Gang hitman John Martorano while in town shooting Shutter Island, then had Departed producer Graham King acquire the hitman's life rights. That last part we already knew about, as it was reported in Variety earlier in the month, but we did not know that this all came about from a secret meeting with Scorsese. The Boston Herald says that most likely Departed screenwriter William Monahan will write the script, which will tell Martorano's story -- one that includes murdering 20 people before flipping for the feds after learning other members of his gang -- like James Bulger, who some say Jack Nicholson's character in The Departed was based on -- were government informants.

This, of course, wouldn't be the first time Scorsese took on the life story of a famous mob snitch -- not only was The Departed all about sniffing out "the rat," but the film Goodfellas told the real-life story of gangster Henry Hill, who eventually flipped on his guys and entered the witness protection program. No official word on whether Marty is involved with Martorano's story -- or if this would replace any Departed follow-up -- but I don't think any of us would be surprised.