Martin Scorsese has won one Academy Award for Best Director. He received the Oscar for directing The Departed at the 79th Academy Awards, held on February 25, 2007.
The win came after five earlier Best Director nominations without a victory. Scorsese had previously been nominated for Raging Bull, The Last Temptation of Christ, Goodfellas, Gangs of New York, and The Aviator. The Departed also won Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Film Editing.
The result is often confused with Scorsese's many other major honors. He has won awards from institutions including BAFTA, the Golden Globes, Cannes, and Venice, but those are separate from the Academy Award for Best Director. His films have also earned numerous Oscar nominations, which can make his personal Oscar record seem larger than it is.
The Departed was Scorsese's first personal Academy Award win. The crime thriller, starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson, and Mark Wahlberg, was adapted from the Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs.