Goodfellas star Ray Liotta has admitted the regret he feels about the way he has handled his career, including turning down the chance to audition for Tim Burton’s Batman movie.
The American actor, who shot to fame as Henry Hill in Martin Scorsese’s gangster movie opposite Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci, said he thinks his career could have followed a different path.
He said: “I wish I’d handled my career differently but, you know, hindsight …
“When I did my first movie, Tim Burton was getting ready to do Batman and he was interested in me because he wanted it to be edgy and real.
“My first movie was Something Wild – I was a real edgy kind of guy.
“I thought, ‘Batman? That’s a stupid idea’, even though he’d had just done one of my favourite movies of all time, Beetlejuice. So yes, I regret not auditioning.
“That movie and the success of Jack Nicholson… my career could have taken off in a different kind of way.”
Ray, 61, is still firmly associated with the role of Hill decades after the film was released, but said he does not mind that it’s still his biggest hit.
“People ask if I’m bothered by that, but no, Goodfellas will be a top-10 movie for years and years, it seems.
“I have kids coming up to me like the movie has come out that week, not realising it’s like 26 years old.”
However, he said he is not sure he would be cast in the film if it was made today, or even if it would still get made.
He said: “It might, but it would probably be just for a couple of million of dollars and it would have to be with somebody, it might not be me, it depends on what the budget is.
“If it was for a couple of million maybe I would be cast for it. If it were over – because I’m not considered a star in the sense that people put up $100 million dollars.”
Ray said he is now obsessed with TV news and watches CNN all day. Contemplating the imminent American election, he said: “I’m fascinated by it, I really am.
“But there’s so much at stake and part of me likes the edginess and the unpredictability of Trump but then when it really comes down to it, is that the guy? I think he’s smarter than he’s letting on.”
Ray will next be seen opposite Jennifer Lopez in crime drama Shades Of Blue, in which the pair play corrupt police officers, and the actor admitted he was initially hesitant about playing opposite a star best known in acting for her romantic comedies.
He said: “I get a lot of, ‘Seriously? You and Jennifer Lopez?’,” he laughs.
“She’s not known for that edgier kind of affair, and I am, and I think they (the producers) had to let the audience know it wasn’t a romantic comedy.”
Shades Of Blue begins on Sky Living on Wednesday July 13 and will be available this month on NOW with the NOW TV Entertainment Month Pass.
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