'The Irishman' director is confronted with the inquiry when making an appearance at the Rome Film Fest in Italy along with his frequent collaborator, producer Emma Tillinger Koskoff.

• Oct 22, 2019

AceShowbiz - Martin Scorsese is defending his decision to feature mostly male protagonists during his decades long career.

"The Irishman" director and his frequent collaborator, producer Emma Tillinger Koskoff, were at the Rome Film Fest in Italy on Monday, October 21 when a journalist pointed out the lack of female representation in Scorsese's productions.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the filmmaker quickly shot down the suggestion.

"No. That's not even a valid point. That's not valid. I can't.... That goes back to 1970. That's a question that I've had for so many years. Am I supposed to?".

"If the story doesn't call for it (female characters).... It's a waste of everybody's time. If the story calls for a female character lead, why not?," he responded, sounding somewhat frustrated, reported the news outlet.

Koskoff then highlighted one of his early, female-driven films, "Alice Doesn't Live Here Anymore".

"Oh, that's only one film," Scorsese responded. "They don't count that. Age of Innocence, they don't count that... Casino. Sharon Stone's great in that. They don't count that. Forget it."

As for whether he'll start featuring more women in future projects, Scorsese cites his age as the reason he may not get around to it.

"Sure, I'd like to do (sic)," he stated. "But you know what, I'm 76 now. How am I going to have the time? I don't know what's going to happen. We don't know. I don't have time anymore."