Why didn't Ray Liotta ever become one of Hollywood's top leading men?

P

Philip

Member
May 18, 2008
150
0
16
Back in 1990 it seemed like he was destined for greatness. His portrayal of mobster Henry Hill in Martin Scorsese's epic "GoodFellas" was nothing short of magnificent. However, he soon disappeared into low-budget films and straight-to-cable B-movies. He never landed another leading role in a major motion picture again. What happened?
 
Even though he played the main character in Goodfellas, he was not the leading man. Goodfellas was very much a vehicle for Robert DeNiro. Also, Joe Pesci's fiery performance (which earned him an Oscar) kinda stole the show from both DeNiro and Liotta. But the main reason is because Liotta is great at playing gangsters and villains, but not so great as a lead in a typical drama, and villains are seldom given top billing in a motion picture. He was a victim of typecasting. You simply can't make half a dozen gangster flicks per year for him to star in. That is why his stock dropped regardless of his fantastic performance.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top