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Ray Liotta Died Just a Week After Finishing His ‘Cocaine Bear’ Role

Actor Ray Liotta died in May 2022 but he finished work on Cocaine Bear just one week before he passed away. Director Elizabeth Banks recalls Liotta coming to wrap up his work on the film.

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“He came to Ireland with the best attitude,” Banks says in a wide-ranging interview with Variety. “He had a great time. (And) He came for ADR and saw the film, and was like, ‘Oh, my God, the bear looks so good!’” Banks’ eyes welled up when talking about the famed actor. Liotta had traveled there to rerecord his dialogue for the movie.

Ray Liotta Character Is Reportedly The Real Villain In ‘Cocaine Bear’

After seeing the first cut of the movie, Banks “definitely took gore out” but most sparingly. There’s a scene between the bear and a drug dealer played by Liotta. Liotta’s character is reportedly the real villain in the flick.

Cocaine Bear is a dark, R-rated action-comedy film. It is based somewhat on a true story about a 175-pund black bear living in the Chattahoochee National Forest in Georgia. In the mid-1980s, this bear ingested 70 pounds of cocaine that dropped out of an airplane. An aerial drug run went bad. In real life, the bear overdosed and died. The movie, though, shows a drug-addled bear rampaging through the woods. He’s on the prowl for more cocaine.

Liotta’s Fiancee Jacy Nittolo Remembered Liotta On What Would Have Been 68th Birthday

In the weeks and months since Liotta’s death, his fiancee Jacy Nittolo has remembered him with a number of touching tributes. One of them happened on what would have been his 68th birthday. She wrote on Instagram, “Today, Ray would have been 68. I believe he created a lot for everyone that will live on forever, especially in the hearts of Ray’s sister Linda, his daughter Karsen and myself. Today we celebrate you.”

Last August, Nittolo shared with the world that she’s gotten a tattoo in Liotta’s memory. In pictures that she shared on Instagram, Nittolo is seen getting the tattoo work done at the Shamrock Social Club. Store owner Mark Mahoney did the tattoo work for her. Nittolo and Mahoney are seen in the photos. But we never do get a chance to see what the tattoo looks like.

Before he died, Liotta had plans to keep on working as an actor. One of the projects that he was involved in is titled Black Bird. “I wrote the part for him and he jumped at it,” said Dennis Lehane, who is the writer, executive producer, and showrunner. “He’s always been one of my favorite actors and I consider him one of the most underutilized actors out there.”