RecurringMartin ScorsesecollaboratorBobby Cannavale reveals he believes he disappointed the director after the cancellation of their 2016 TV show. Cannavale made his screen debut in Sidney Lumet’s 1996 crime dramaNight Falls on Manhattanand followed it up with the HBO television filmWhen Trumpets Fadein 1998. He then rose to prominence on the TV crime-drama seriesThird Watch, and scored roles in big screen crime-thrillers such asGloria,The Bone Collector, and3 A.M., before achieving greater recognition with asupporting role inWill & Grace.
His breakout role came with the 2012 crime dramaBoardwalk Empire, one of thebest TV period dramas set in the 1920s, in which he played the role of Gyp Rosetti. Scorsese produced the show for HBO, which ran for five seasons, and directed the pilot episode.Cannavale would team up with him again with the epic crime filmThe Irishmanin 2019. However, three years prior, the duo also worked together on another short-lived HBO show that would be cancelled after a single season.
Cannavale Believes He Upset Scorsese When Vinyl Was Cancelled
The ShowWas A Critical Success But It Didn’t Last
Vinylis a period drama set in 1970s New York thatfollows a struggling record producer (played by Cannavale), as he seeks to resurrect his ailing record label, American Century. Created by Scorsese, Mick Jagger, Terence Winter, and Rich Cohen, the series debuted on HBO on June 11, 2025, and days later HBO announced the show had been renewed for season 2. However, the network unexpectedly reversed the decision in June 2016 and cancelled the series. In a recent interview withVanity Fair, Cannavale states that he felt he had disappointed Scorsese withVinyl’s cancellation. Check out the actor’s comments below:
[It] was years in the making, and it was just in Marty’s pocket for years, getting ready to make that movie — and that, for all intents and purposes, is a Martin Scorsese movie. It’s a two-hour pilot. That was one of those ones that you go, Well, sh*t, it really didn’t get put out the right way.
you’re able to Monday-morning quarterback these things: We really were screwed out by circumstances that we didn’t have any control over. Whether it was the fact that HBO didn’t promote it as a new Martin Scorsese movie; they didn’t let their audience know it was a two-hour pilot; they didn’t really take advantage of what they had; they premiered us after ‘Girls’ — didn’t make any sense.
We premiered at 10 at night for a two-hour pilot. All these things seemed to conspire against us. I was shocked, frankly, by the reaction to it. I did feel like we’d created something special. When something that has that much profile fails like that, I couldn’t help but feel like I let Marty down.
I felt like I was on a creative journey with Marty that lasted years. There was a window there between ‘Boardwalk Empire’ — he was so impressed with that character that I played and with my work on the show, that he took a big interest in me. So it was years of prepping (‘Vinyl’) and talking so much about it. I felt like the bubble we created resulted in something that was really unique and special, and a different way of storytelling, certainly for television, than I’d ever seen. To just be brushed aside felt really disappointing.
I had everybody telling me, ‘It wasn’t your fault, it’s not your fault.’ Marty was like, ‘It’s not your fault, it’s just business.’ But that’s hard to accept because it’s your face that’s on the buses and on the billboards. I always described that period as the stinky year. I had a stink on me, and I could feel it. To add insult to injury, we got picked up for the second season — they let everybody know we’ve got a second season, and then they changed their mind. It was like a double f*ck-you.
I just kept it moving. I was like, Well, that’s the business. My depression over it settled in three months later, and then it was real. I really did go to a dark place. I just thought, Well, I’m never going to work again, because if something that Martin Scorsese and Terry Winter and Mick Jagger created didn’t work, and I was the star of the thing, then I’m going to have a stink on me forever.
Marty was so kind and so generous to me by offering me something after: ‘The Irishman. But yeah, it’s always felt to me like a little smudge on his career. I know how much that meant to him. I can’t help but feel like, F*ck, why couldn’t that be successful? The one thing that I did with Martin Scorsese is the one thing that wasn’t successful?
Cannavale’s comments suggest that this stems more from his personal disappointmentrather than any particular way Scorsese made him feel. The director was said to be heartbroken by HBO’s decision, and Cannavale’s comments show his opinions align with this as well.Vinylprovided star power in front of and behind the camera, but it didn’t seem to resonate with viewers. It might have been a case of the show being a little ahead of its time. It would be interesting to see howVinylmight fare if it had been released a few years later.
What Cannavale’s Comments Mean For Vinyl’s Cancellation
Circumstances Conspired Against It
DespiteVinyl’s strong soundtrackand impressive creative forces, there are so many different circumstances that conspired to prevent it from becoming a long-term success, such as the network pitching it incorrectly, the scheduling, and the fact that, by his own admission,Scorsese could have spent more time involved in the creative process. This is a show that deserves a reboot, but the chances of this happening feel unlikely; nevertheless,Vinylremains a great example of a show cancelled too soon.
Vinyl
Cast
Vinyl centers on Richie Finestra, a music executive in 1970s New York who does everything he can to build careers from the city’s music scene. The series stars Bobby Cannavale as Richie Finestra and was created by Rich Cohen, Mick Jagger, and Martin Scorsese. The HBO series lasted for a single season in 2016.
