Robert De Niro Speaks Out After Ray Liotta's Death: 'He Was Still Young'

The actor starred with Ray Liotta in 'Goodfellas.'

Robert De Niro is opening up about the loss of his late Goodfellas co-star, Ray Liotta, who died at age 67 in May.

During an interview on Monday's episode of the Today show, De Niro was asked about the sudden death of Liotta. While De Niro admitted he didn't personally know Liotta all that well after filming the 1990 gangster film, he shared that he really enjoyed watching the late actor's work in films.

"He was a wonderful actor and I'm very sad," De Niro said. "He was still young, as far as I'm concerned."

De Niro shared a similar message in a statement to ET last month. "I was very saddened to learn of Ray’s passing," he said at the time. "He is way too young to have left us. May he Rest in Peace."

Goodfellas director Martin Scorsese also recently spoke out about Liotta, sharing that he regrets not working with him again following the film.

"We had many plans to work together again but the timing was always off, or the project wasn’t quite right," Scorsese wrote in a letter published by The Guardian. "I regret that now."

The 79-year-old director explained that his desire to work with Liotta after he watched him portray Jay Marotta in the 2019 movie Marriage Story was at an all-time high.

"He’s genuinely scary in the role, which is precisely why he’s so funny — I remember feeling that I wanted to work with him again at this point in his life, to explore the gravity in his presence, so different from the young, sprightly actor he was when I met him," Scorsese said.

"I wish I’d had the chance to see him just once more, too — to tell him just how much the work we did together meant to me," Scorsese added. "But maybe he knew that. I hope so."

RELATED CONTENT: