FAQ

For detailed information about the amounts and types of (a) sex and nudity, (b) violence and gore, (c) profanity, (d) alcohol, drugs, and smoking, and (e) frightening and intense scenes in this movie, consult the IMDb Parents Guide for this movie. The Parents Guide for Goodfellas can be found here.

Goodfellas is based on Wiseguy, a 1986 book by Nicholas Pileggi. The title of Pileggi's book was changed to Goodfellas because it had already been used for a TV series and for Brian De Palma's comedy Wise Guys (1986).

Warner Brothers did not receive permission to use the airline's logo in the film. It was an American Airlines ticket and the company did not want to be affiliated with the illegal operation depicted in the movie (drug trafficking).

Actors who have had roles on the TV show The Sopranos who also made an appearance in GoodFellas include: Lorraine Bracco (Dr. Jennifer Melfi), Michael Imperioli (Christopher Moltisanti), Tony Darrow (Lawrence "Larry Boy" Barese), Tony Lip (Carmine Lupertazzi), Tony Sirico (Paulie Gualtieri), Vincent Pastore ("Big Pussy" Bonpensiero), Frank Vincent (Phil Leotardo), Anthony Caso, Tobin Bell, Gene Canfield, Nicole Burdette, Gaetano LoGiudice, Vito Antuofermo, Chuck Low, Frank Adonis, Suzanne Shepherd, Nancy Cassaro, Frank Pellegrino, Marianne Leone, Paul Herman, Frank Albanese, Anthony Alessandro, Victor Colicchio, and John "Cha Cha" Ciarcia. (A list with headshots can be found here.)

Both The Big Heist and The $10 Million-Dollar Getaway cover much the same ground and feature the same characters but are more down-to-earth and tend to concentrate on the Lufthansa robbery and its aftermath. In some ways, they are more true to life; for instance, The Big Heist depicts Tommy's physical appearance much more accurately than Goodfellas does. Fundamentally it depends on how much Henry Hill's recollections are to be trusted.