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Keitel's early advocacy for emerging filmmakers first brought him into collaboration with Martin Scorsese. Their union began with Mean Streets and continued with the seminal film Taxi Driver, both of which would later garner admiration from Quentin Tarantino. However, Keitel's career faced a formidable downturn; a notable incident involved Francis Ford Coppola, who famously ousted him from Apocalypse Now, replacing him with Martin Sheen.

Another notorious stumbling block came during the production of Saturn 3, where Keitel's voice was completely over-dubbed, stripping him of the opportunity to showcase his talent. Such setbacks, however, did not deter him from seeking further opportunities with lesser-known directors, providing an avenue back to his creative roots.