Director Martin Scorsese paid tribute to late actor Ray Liotta, who died in May, at the age of 67. Writing an op-ed in The Guardian, Scorsese revealed regretting not working with Liotta beyond ‘Goodfellas‘. 

“We had many plans to work together again but the timing was always off, or the project wasn’t quite right. I regret that now”, Scorsese wrote, adding, “When I watched Ray as the divorce lawyer in ‘Marriage Story’ — he’s genuinely scary in the role, which is precisely why he’s so funny — I remember feeling that I wanted to work with him again at this point in his life, to explore the gravity in his presence, so different from the young, sprightly actor he was when I met him.” 

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The Palme d’Or winner continued, “I wish I’d had the chance to see him just once more, too — to tell him just how much the work we did together meant to me. But maybe he knew that. I hope so”. 

Scorsese was the one who’d pushed for Liotta to be cast as Henry Hill, in the now-iconic gangster movie. If the studio executives had their way, Tom Cruise would have likely essayed the part. 

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In a statement, Scorsese sent to The Hollywood Reporter, he had said “He was so uniquely gifted, so adventurous, so courageous as an actor. Playing Henry Hill in Good Fellas 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.” 

Liotta died in his sleep in his hotel room, in the Dominican Republic, while filming ‘Dangerous Waters’.