Ray Liotta Remembered By James Mangold, Jeffrey Wright, Jamie Lee Curtis & More: “A Sweet, Playful And Passionate Collaborator”

Refresh for updates…Tributes to actor Ray Liotta have begun flooding in following the stunning revelation in Deadline of his death today at age 67, with colleagues remembering him not only for his artistic gifts, but also for his character, and a demeanor at odds with that of his most iconic characters.

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“I am utterly shattered to hear this terrible news about my Ray,” wrote Lorraine Bracco, who starred with Liotta in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas. “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.”

Actor Robert De Niro said in a statement, “I was very saddened to learn of Ray’s passing. He is way too young to have left us.”

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Jesse Tyler Ferguson fondly remembered working with Liotta when the actor guest-starred in a 2016 episode of Modern Family. “He was one of the greatest actors of our generation,” Ferguson told Deadline. “The day he was on Modern Family was such a special day. We were really lucky to get a lot of great guest stars, and every once in a while there would be one of his stature that would come in a play with us for the day, and it made us feel so special that they wanted to take the time to come and be with us. He was a movie star, a huge movie star, and I’m just so grateful that he left behind such a beautiful body of work, because that is all we can hope to do with our time on this earth – leave behind something for people to remember us by. And he certainly left a wealth of beautiful performances for us to remember him by.”

“RIP Ray Liotta. I feel so lucky to have squared off against this legend in one of his final roles,” wrote The Many Saints of Newark‘s Alessandro Nivola. “The scenes we did together were among the all time highlights of my acting career. He was dangerous, unpredictable, hilarious, and generous with his praise for other actors.Too soon.”

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“Shocking and saddened to hear of Ray Liotta’s passing,” wrote Ford v. Ferrari filmmaker James Mangold. “Beyond the tough guy exterior and the tightly wound emotions of his signature characters, he was a sweet, playful and passionate collaborator and brilliant actor. RIP.”

“Ray Liotta. Man. Just met dude for the first time last year. GREAT actor,” wrote Westworld star Jeffrey Wright. “Nice to have had a chance to say that to him. RIP.”

“Ray Liotta has died. His work as an actor showed his complexity as a human being,” wrote Everything Everywhere All at Once‘s Jamie Lee Curtis. “A gentle man. So sad to hear.”

Then, there was The Princess Bride‘s Cary Elwes, who remembered Liotta as “an extraordinary talent whose remarkable performances left an indelible mark on the screen.”

Deadline hears that Liotta passed in his sleep in the Dominican Republic, where he was shooting the film Dangerous Waters. We will have share more reactions as they come in…

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