In the wake of Ray Liotta’s untimely death, his co-stars and Hollywood legends have been reacting to the news. One of Liotta’s best roles was his portrayal of real-life mobster Henry Hill in Martin Scorcese’s legendary 1990 film Goodfellas, which snagged dozens of prestigious award nominations, and one Oscar win, and also gave us some of Hollywood’s most iconic comebacks.
Scorcese made a statement to People in which he praises the “gifted” actor.
I’m absolutely shocked and devastated by the sudden, unexpected death of Ray Liotta. He was so uniquely gifted, so adventurous, so courageous as an actor. Playing Henry Hill in Goodfellas was a tall order, because the character had so many different facets, so many complicated layers, and Ray was in almost every scene of a long, tough shoot. He absolutely amazed me, and I’ll always be proud of the work we did together on that picture. My heart goes out to his loved ones, and it aches for his loss, way too early.
Several more of Liotta’s costars have been paying tribute to the late actor, who allegedly died in his sleep while in the Dominican Republic. His on-screen wife Lorraine Bracco made a moving post on Twitter: “I am utterly shattered to hear this terrible news about my Ray,” Bracco said. “I can be anywhere in the world & people will come up & tell me their favorite movie is Goodfellas. Then they always ask what was the best part of making that movie. My response has always been the same…Ray Liotta.”
Co-star Robert De Niro reacted to the news in another statement, “I was very saddened to learn of Ray’s passing. He is way too young to have left us. May he rest in peace.”
Liotta was busy up until his death, most recently filming Dangerous Waters alongside Eric Dane earlier this month. He also starred in last year’s The Sopranos prequel movie, The Many Saints Of Newark.