Tragic news today, as celebrated actorRay Liottahas died at age 67. The actor, best known for his role as real-life gangster Henry Hill in director Martin Scorsese’s iconic 1990s mob flick,Goodfellas, sadly passed away in his sleep.
According to a report courtesy ofDeadline,Liotta died while in the Dominican Republic, where he had been shooting the upcoming movieDangerous Waters.Unfortunately, no more details have been released. The actor is survived by his daughter, Karsen. He was engaged to be married to Jacy Nittolo.
Ray Liotta’s career spans across four decades, with the actor appearing in several beloved movies including the likes of the sports fantasy dramaField of Dreams, which was released in 1989 and saw Liotta star as the ghost of baseball player Shoeless Joe Jackson opposite Kevin Costner. Liotta’s first major acting role was as Ray Sinclair in director Jonathan Demme’s screwball comedy romance,Something Wild, which was released back in 1986. A role which earned Liotta a Golden Globe nomination.
Over the years, Liotta has proven time and again why he is one of the most recognizable names, faces, and voices in Hollywood, starring in such major projects asUnlawful Entry(1992),Cop Land(1997),Hannibal(2001),Blow(2001),John Q(2002),Identity(2003),Observe and Report(2009),Killing Them Softly(2012),The Place Beyond the Pines(2012), andMarriage Story(2019), as well as voicing Tommy Vercetti in the video gameGrand Theft Auto: Vice Cityin 2002. Liotta has starred alongside such big names as Denzel Washington, Sylvester Stallone, Anthony Hopkins, and Brad Pitt, among many, many others.
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Ray Liotta is Best Known for His Role as Henry Hill in the Classic Gangster Movie Goodfellas
Liotta though is best recognized for his role as Henry Hill in the iconic gangster outingGoodfellas. Directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Nicholas Pileggi and Scorsese, and produced by Irwin Winkler, Liotta leads an ensemble cast that includes Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco, and Paul Sorvino, exploring the life and times of Henry Hill and detailing the rise and fall of the mob associate and his friends and family from 1955 to 1980.
Ray Liotta was last seen slipping effortlessly back into the role of a gangster in last year’sThe Sopranosprequel,The Many Saints of Newark. Liotta played duel roles as twin brothers “Hollywood Dick” Moltisanti and Salvatore “Sally” Moltisanti, opposite Alessandro Nivola as Dickie Moltisanti.The Many Saints of Newarktells the early years of Tony Soprano (Michael Gandolfini), taking the perspective of mobster Dickie and his gangster activities in the midst of the 1967 riots on the streets of Newark. Before that, Liotta had deomstrated his affinity for playing mobster characters in director Steven Soderbergh’s critically acclaimedNo Sudden Move.
Liotta had several projects in the pipeline, includingEvery Last Secret,Elizabeth Banks’Cocaine Bear, an untitled movie with Charlie Day, andThe Substance. It is unknown exactly how far along these projects were in production.
The news of Ray Liotta’s untimely death is shocking, and the actor will be sorely missed on the silver screen.
