Martin Scorsese Regrets Not Working With Ray Liotta After Goodfellas – The Hollywood Reporter
While paying tribute to the late Ray Liotta, Martin Scorsese reflected on why he couldn’t work with the actor again after Goodfellas.
In a selection for Guardiansannounced Monday, Scorsese recalled working with the actor, who died last month at the age of 67, on the 1990 classic, and shared his regrets for never coming back. with the actor on another project before his death.
“We had many plans to work together again but the timing was always off, or the project didn’t quite fit. Now I regret it,” Scorsese wrote. “When I watched Ray as a divorce lawyer in Marriage Story – he was really scary in the role which is why he was so funny – i remember feeling that i wanted to work with him again at this point in his life, to explore He broke the gravity of his presence, so different from the young, nimble actor he was when I met him. ”
“I wish I had the chance to see him again too – to tell him how much the work we did together means to me. But maybe you know it. I hope so,” Scorsese continued.
During her tribute, Scorsese shared behind-the-scenes stories from Goodfellasdescribes Liotta as someone who “never misses a beat” and their relationship is one that is “like we’ve worked together for years”.
While on set, Scorsese found Liotta “distraught” in his trailer after learning his mother had passed away. Although the director “told him he had to go with her,” Scorsese recalled Liotta was “adamant” that “he wanted to do this scene before he left.” The director called it a “rare experience” to see Liotta act “so beautiful” before leaving to “be with his dear mother”.
Scorsese wrote: “We walked to the set together, everyone knew what was going on, and something extraordinary happened as we rolled. “The scene is about the characters’ euphoria after their first big score, and people coming together in an emotional bond around Ray: when everyone is laughing and celebrating, they also mourn him. Laughter and tears, tears and laughter… they are one and the same. ”
Journalist Jennifer Allen told CHEAP that Liotta died while sleeping in his hotel room while in the Dominican Republic making a movie Dangerous waters, which he had started working on a week earlier. His fiancée, Jacy Nittolo, was with him.
In a statement sent to CHEAP After the news of Liotta’s death, Scorsese said, “He was exceptionally gifted, very adventurous, very courageous as an actor. Playing the role of Henry Hill in Good Fellas was a tall order, because the character had so many different sides, so many layers of complexity, and Ray was present in almost every shot of a long and difficult shoot. He completely amazed me, and I will always be proud of the work we did together on that painting. My heart goes out to his loved ones, and grief over his loss, too soon.”
GoodFellas Co-stars Robert De Niro and Lorraine Bracco also paid tribute to Liotta. “I was deeply saddened to hear of Ray’s passing. He’s too young to leave us. May he rest in peace,” De Niro said in a statement addressed to THR. Meanwhile, Bracco tweeted that she was “absolutely heartbroken” by the news and attributed the actor to “the best part” of their movie: “I could be anywhere in the world and anywhere people will come and tell me their favorite movie is ‘Goodfellas. ‘ Then they always ask what was the best part about making that movie. My answer is always the same… Ray Liotta. ”
