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    Henry Hill 

Henry Hill

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/henryhillgoodfellas.jpg
"As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster."

Portrayed By: Ray Liotta, Christopher Serrone (young)

"For us, to live any other way was nuts. To us, those goody-good people who worked shitty jobs for bum paychecks... and took the subway to work and worried about bills, were dead. They were suckers. They had no balls. If we wanted something, we just took it."

A half-Irish and half-Italian associate with the Lucchese crime family; he is the film's protagonist and narrator.


  • Abled in the Adaptation: The real Henry had learning disabilities so severe that he didn't learn the alphabet until he was twenty. The movie doesn't really touch on this fact, aside from him having a difficult time in school, and even then a viewer could easily get the impression that he did poorly simply because he was already uninterested in an honest living.
  • Abusive Parents: His father beats him quite savagely early in the film. Granted he had just found out that Henry had skipped school for a month and was hanging out with hardened criminals but still.
  • Adapted Out: His three year stint in the Army is never mentioned.
  • All for Nothing: Henry comes to the end of his story having learned nothing. As Roger Ebert wrote in his review, his only regret after selling his soul to the Mafia is that he has no more soul to sell.
  • Alliterative Name: Henry Hill.
  • Amazon Chaser: Henry doesn't take an interest in Karen until she chews him out for standing her up for their double date with Tommy and her friend.
  • Anti-Villain: Henry is more sympathetic than Tommy and Jimmy and provides A Lighter Shade of Black. His moral fiber is not that flexible when compared to the rest of his partners. It's established early on, during his teenage years, when he helps to bandage the arm of a man who had been shot and is berated for wasting good aprons.
  • Ascended Fanboy: A dark example. He had admiration for gangsters since he was a child because "they do everything they want" and always knew he wanted to be a part of them. He actually becomes one as an adult.
  • The Atoner: Averted. Henry does have a lot of cases of Even Evil Has Standards and is openly remorseful and horrified at the things he witnesses, aids, and performs during his time in the mafia. At the same time, none of these things are enough to make him stop being part of the Mafia and the only thing that causes him to turn his back on the organization is when they threaten his life. In the end it's clear the only part of his mafia life he regrets is getting caught.
  • Badass in a Nice Suit: A semi-expository scene has Henry suiting up, which is warily received by his mother: "You look like a gangster!"
  • Being Good Sucks: He notes that at the age of 11 he was making more money as a crook than most honest people in his neighborhood. This is the main reason why Henry Hill resents his final fate as a "schnook," where he has to wait in line like all the others he felt contempt towards for most of his life.
  • Big Brother Instinct: Even while in the mafia and high off his own product, Henry takes the time to make sure his younger, wheelchair-bound brother makes it to the latter's scheduled doctor visit.
  • Break the Haughty: When Henry realizes that he's going to get whacked he doesn't take it well.
  • Brilliant, but Lazy: He's regularly shown to be smart and a very capable earner for the mafia but has no interest in a legitimate career path. In real life, this was partially due to Henry have learning difficulties he wouldn't be diagnosed with until after the film was released, most notably severe dyslexia.
  • Career-Revealing Trait: After witnessing Henry's inexplicable connections, Karen has to ask what he does for a living; Henry claims to be in construction, but a quick feel of Henry's smooth, unmuscled hands reveals this to be a pretty obvious lie, so he elaborates and tells her that he's a "union delegate".
  • Consummate Liar: Henry lies to everybody. He lies to Karen constantly about the risks of the business and his infidelities. He tells Paulie he won't deal drugs and will report to him any of the crew who does... and then immediately brings Jimmy and Tommy in on a massive cocaine operation. He tells Jimmy he won't buy anything excessive with the money that'll draw attention. Gilligan Cut to Henry with a giant Christmas tree, shouting "KAREN! I GOT THE MOST EXPENSIVE ONE THEY HAD!!!!"note 
  • Damn, It Feels Good to Be a Gangster!: Provides the trope's quote. Hill enjoys the lavish lifestyle and respect from being a gangster.
  • Drugs Are Bad: Not only does taking them make you disheveled and paranoid but selling them brings the heat of the FBI on you and drives away anybody that could have helped you.
  • Entitled Bastard: Henry in a nutshell. For most of his life, Henry had no problem breaking any rule that came his way and living his life without consequence and acted like he was simply being smart. Even at the end when his life has fallen apart and he's trying to save his life, he whines that he doesn't want to go somewhere cold and complains that he didn't get any good spaghetti like he used to...
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: For all his flaws and infidelities, Henry genuinely loves Karen and his daughters. He also is shown to have for his siblings, as he takes his younger brother for a scheduled doctor visit.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: Henry's a jerk and lifelong criminal but draws the line at murder. Even he's visibly disturbed when Tommy and Jimmy brutally beat up Billy Batts.
  • Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Henry never shows any understanding of why anyone would want to live a normal life and sees average people as "suckers". Even at the end, he's mainly resentful about losing all his privileges and never expresses any genuine remorse for his misdeeds.
  • Fatal Flaw: He's greedy and sets up his own operation that gets him arrested. Worse is that he clearly hasn't learned anything by the end.
  • A Fate Worse Than Death: Henry and his family go into the witness protection program to avoid getting killed by the Lucchese crime family. But Henry hates his new life because he's lost everything from his time as a gangster and has to live as a nobody or a "schnook," as he calls it. As Henry closes the door of his new home, the viewer hears a cell door slamming shut. Even though he's technically a free man, becoming a regular person, the type of people he's loathed his whole life, is worse than prison.
  • From Nobody to Nightmare: Henry goes from a small kid in love with the criminal life to becoming a member of the Lucchese crime family. He becomes a nobody again after testifying and going through the witness protection program and losing everything from his life of crime. As he puts it, he's an average nobody and gets to live his life like a "schnook."
  • Functional Addict: Zigzagged. His serious cocaine addiction does impede him, to the point that Jimmy tells him "they're making his mind into mush", but he is still able to earn and run a hugely lucrative ring.
  • Getting High on Their Own Supply: Got hooked into cocaine the moment he started dealing it and other drugs in prison to support his family. He only gets sober after his wife flushes their entire supply down the toilet to avoid it getting spotted by the narcs.
  • Has a Type: Karen and the two women he had affairs with have one thing in common: Brunettes.
  • Historical Beauty Update: Henry Hill was fairly average looking in reality — real-life mobster Michael Franzese mentioned in his Reddit AMA that Hill "never looked so good in real life" as Liotta does in the movie.
  • Historical Villain Downgrade:
    • In the film, he says that Jimmy had never asked him to kill anybody. Though Hill is an accomplice after the fact on several murders, he never personally kills anyone. In Real Life, Henry Hill did personally kill at least three people, so this crosses over with Unreliable Narrator.
    • The film also relegates his and Jimmy's involvement in the Boston College point shaving scandal to one throwaway line. Likewise it completely leaves out Henry's pioneering role in credit card theft and fraud, the source of most of his earnings prior to his federal prison time (and what eventually got him kicked out of the Witness Protection Program in real life).
    • According to Hill's son and daughter, he was far worse than his portrayal in the film. They recounted how on one occasion a drug-addled Hill gave his teenage daughter a No-Holds-Barred Beatdown. Their life in Witness Protection was hellish. He continued to commit crimes and kept endangering them by telling people who he really was and making calls back home.
  • Historical Villain Upgrade: The real Henry Hill was never entirely comfortable with life in organized crime and tried to leave the mob multiple times, only committing to staying after his involvement in the murder of Billy Batts. He lived in constant mortal terror of his fellow gangsters.
  • Hypocrite:
    • He expresses distaste for Tommy being assassinated for murdering a made man, considering the entire business to be sleazy. In other words, he thinks it is unfair the one time Tommy murders somebody the mafia wouldn't tolerate him killing.
    • Henry routinely justifies and excuses the criminal actions and problematic behavior of himself and his friends, but objects when similar situations happen to him. Basically, Henry and his friends can murder and steal as much as they want, but the second that they are impeded then they have a problem.
  • I Just Want to Be Badass: His opening narration:
    Henry: As far back as I can remember, I always wanted to be a gangster. To me being a gangster was better than being President of the United States.
  • It's All About Me: When Paulie begrudgingly gives Henry money despite him running a drug business behind Paulie's back, Henry's only thought is resentment for only being given a few thousand dollars after working for Paulie for so long. Even at the end, his only regret is that he has to give up the gangster lifestyle and live like a regular law-abiding citizen instead of being thankful for having escaped either imprisonment or mob retaliation. Especially since it was a fate he brought upon himself.
  • Jerkass Has a Point: He may have been cheating on Karen, but he had the right to be pissed when she pointed a gun in his face.
  • Karma Houdini Warranty: Henry Hill avoids prosecution and mob retribution, but is forced to go back to the mundane life he joined the mob to escape and will spend the rest of his life forever pining for the glory days.note 
  • Lemony Narrator: Much of his narration delves into this including his deadpan delivery of "When they found Carbone in the meat truck, he was frozen so stiff it took them three days to thaw him out for the autopsy".
  • A Lighter Shade of Black: For all his flaws, he's not as sadistic as most of his fellow mobsters.
  • Mistreatment-Induced Betrayal: He turns state's witness after it dawns on him that Jimmy is setting him up to be killed.
  • Morality Pet:
    • A downplayed example, but Henry is one of the only people Tommy is entirely nice to; despite being a hot-tempered openly feared hitman, Tommy is never angry or cruel to Henry and treats him much nicer than the other people he interacts with (even apologizing for making a mess when beating a man nearly to death in his joint). For a while it also seems like he's this to Jimmy, but once Jimmy sees Henry as a liability he sets him up to be killed.
    • To Paul Cicero. Instead of whacking him after he becomes a liability, Paulie instead just cuts ties with Henry and even lends him some money for help. Most gangsters would not have been so lucky in Henry's position, and, unfortunately for Paulie, it's his mercy that gets him sent to jail once Henry rats him out.
  • Narrator: Of the movie, obviously.
  • Nice to the Waiter: He provides a straight example at the Copacabana, handing out $20 bills and being friendly with the service.
  • Noble Demon: He's the most principled character throughout the movie, despite being an amoral criminal who'll play along with the rest of the crew.
  • Nominal Hero: On the occasion he sticks up for someone, he'd be here.
  • Only Sane Man: Since he lacks Jimmy's greed and audacity and Tommy's violent temper, Henry tends to be this whenever things get really hairy, such as his attempt to rationally persuade Morrie that it'd be a really good idea to pay Jimmy the money he owes him, or in the scene in Tommy's mother house where she makes a meal for the guys and Tommy borrows a knife, Jimmy pays her a sincere compliment on the food, she chatters away and shows them her bizarre painting— and all the while, Henry is sitting silently, seemingly the only one slightly fazed by the fact that they have a (supposedly) dead mobster in the trunk of his car outside. Of the main three, he is the only one Paulie talks to about drugs and warns away from them, believing (understandably, if wrongly) that he was the only one sensible enough to listen.
  • Pet the Dog:
    • During his teenage segment, he helps a random guy who shows up with a bullet wound. He provides some aprons for the bandages and, tellingly, he's called out by his boss: "You wasted eight fucking aprons on this guy."
    • He's genuinely worried about Morrie and does his best to calm him down, because Henry knows that Jimmy -at the very least- is going to beat the guy senseless if he keeps complaining. Played with in that Henry enjoys watching Jimmy kicking Morrie's ass afterwards.
    • Upon hearing that their next door neighbor sexually assaulted Karen, Henry breaks the man's nose at gunpoint.
  • Properly Paranoid: While being hooked on drugs makes him overly manic, a lot of Henry's paranoia towards Jimmy and the cops turns out to be valid.
  • Psychopathic Manchild: From the get-go, we see that he has an idealized and infantilized view of The Mafia in an oddly similar way to how a child or teenager would. Henry's motivation for becoming a gangster is to live in riches, earn respect, and do whatever the hell he wants without getting punished for it, deriding people who work for a living as "schnooks". When he has to go into witness protection, the only thing he's sad about is losing his money and status.
  • Rags to Riches: He grew up in a poor family in the 50s, then in the 60s he becomes a lavish associate of the Lucchese crime family. He finally goes back to rags again at the end, in the 80s.
  • Redemption Demotion: "Redemption" is debatable since Henry becomes a rat to save his own skin, and the only thing he regrets is getting caught.
  • Relative Button: If you terrify Karen, Henry will a.) pistol-whip you, b.) turn state's evidence and sell out your entire operation to the Feds.
  • Sadist: Not even close to the level of Tommy and Jimmy, but he still has his moments, like when he laughs at the mistreatment of Morrie and Sonny at the hands of his two friends. He also has absolutely no qualms with brutally beating up innocent people, like Janice's boss or the guy who owned his boss money.
  • Sanity Slippage: His coke-fueled paranoia later in the film.
  • Skewed Priorities: After he avoids being arrested and mob retaliation, his only concern is him being forced to give up the gangster life and live like a normal citizen.
  • Taught by Experience: His knowledge of the underworld allows him to navigate it safely for decades. He's particularly good at reading Jimmy and anticipates his actions often, having seen him in action so many times. This is the reason why Henry outlives most of his fellows.
  • Tall, Dark, and Handsome: He's six feet tall with dark hair and is quite handsome.
  • Thou Shalt Not Kill: In a case of Artistic License, Henry never takes part in any killing in the film. Though not because of any moral reasons, but because it makes him too squeamish. In real life this is due to Henry Hill deliberately failing to mention any murders he committed while he was interviewed for the book, though it was eventually revealed that he had committed at least three murders.
  • Took a Level in Badass: Henry starts doing petty errands for the Mafia as a teenager. Some time afterwards, he's setting cars on fire.
  • Took a Level in Jerkass: While he does become more badass, he also goes from a reasonably sweet kid to a complete thug.
  • Unreliable Narrator: Doesn't outright lie, but it's clear his perception is warped by his experience in life. For example, he believes that when kids carried his groceries all the way home when he was a teen, it was out of respect, when in reality it was due to him being a reckless, violent teen backed up by the local mob.
  • Used to Be a Sweet Kid: As a teen, Henry had a conscience. He still does as an adult, but by then he's not above threatening innocent people.
  • Villainous Breakdown: The scene after he gets busted when Henry finds out that Karen flushed cocaine worth $60,000 down the toilet so the cops wouldn't have found it. This breakdown in particular happened in 2 stages: he was first angry at her for throwing it away, then he breaks down crying realizing that his life as a mobster is over.
  • Villain Protagonist: Since he's the main character, although he's also an Anti-Villain.
  • Where Are They Now: The epilogue states that he and Karen separated in 1989 (eventually divorcing in 2002 in Real Life), and was sentenced to five years' probation the previous year for drug charges, after which he apparently went clean (though the real Hill would get arrested again in 2001 and 2004 for drugs, and then once again in 2009 for disorderly conduct while under the influence). Eventually, the real Hill died in 2012 from natural causes.
  • Would Hit a Girl: He throws a lamp at Karen when they had an argument. He later takes the gun that Karen held him at gunpoint with and points it at her face, threatening to kill her after she finds out he cheated on her.

    Jimmy "The Gent" Conway 

Jimmy "The Gent" Conway

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/jimmythegentconwaygoodfellas.jpg
"Never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut."

Portrayed By: Robert De Niro

"Think Morrie tells his wife everything?"

An Irish-American gangster and Lucchese associate; he is one of Henry's close friends.


  • Adaptational Name Change: He was Jimmy Burke in real life. The filmmakers decided to use his mother's maiden name of Conway, which he sometimes used as an alias, after his sister threatened to sue them.
  • Affably Evil: An interesting case of someone who starts as Affably Evil but gradually degrades to Faux Affably Evil when they begin to question loyalties. At first, he's very amiable and generous despite being a violent mobster. After the Lufthansa heist, he continues to act friendly even as his increasing paranoia drives him to kill anyone who threatens his plans. By the time Henry's trying to sell him silencers, he's not even pretending to be affable anymore.
  • Ax-Crazy: A very subdued and disturbing one. We rarely see him lose his cool demeanor, and he comes off as a seemingly rational individual. However, there are moments when he becomes an absolutely terrifying Mood-Swinger, willing to use brutal violence without restrictions. One notable instance is the brutal beating of Billy Batts, just a few seconds after having a conversation with him, and the elimination of those involved in the Lufthansa heist due to mere paranoia.
  • Badass in a Nice Suit: He may be a horrible boss as mentioned below, but it's hard not to admit he looks great in a suit.
  • Bad Boss: Kills everyone who was involved in the Lufthansa heist. This is ultimately his Fatal Flaw. Jimmy's inclination to whack any liability the second they stop being useful becomes pretty well spotted. As such, Henry and even Karen can tell they're being set up to be murdered, driving them both to forsake any loyalty to him and run to the FBI to rat.
  • Berserk Button: Has two.
    • Jimmy is much, much more obsessed with money than the other gangsters in the movie, and his friendly demeanor drops if someone owes him money but won't pay. On the opposite side, if Jimmy owes you money, bringing it up is a good way to infuriate him. He'd rather murder his benefactors and keep the cash than have to pay them back.
    • Jimmy has no patience for people who are sloppy and could pose a liability to his operations. This particular paranoia becomes more and more apparent as the film progresses, and anyone who leaves too many clues or in any way slips up will find themselves getting whacked.
  • Big Bad Duumvirate: With Paul Cicero. Paulie is an intelligent, cunning, feared, and respected captain within the Lucchese family, providing direction and leadership to lower-ranking members and associates; whereas Jimmy is a more active and violent associate, carrying out many of the more direct actions. The actions of both characters influence the development of the story and lead to significant consequences for Henry.
  • The Dragon: To Paul Cicero, despite not being a "made" man due to his Irish heritage.
  • Dragon-in-Chief: By the end of the 1970s.
  • The Dreaded: Just like his Real Life counterpart, everyone is frightened of Jimmy and knows better than to get on his bad side, Henry even describing him as one of the most feared gangsters in the city in his first scene.
  • Entitled Bastard: Jimmy is incensed when people don't pay him the money he thinks he deserves. But when *he* has to pay others their fair share? He'd rather kill them than hand it over. Even people he's known for years, he has no issue killing them off if they even slightly inconvenience him.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Jimmy cries and is genuinely devastated when his best friend Tommy is murdered.
  • Even Evil Has Standards: Subverted. Jimmy gives Tommy a serious rebuke after the gratuitous shooting of Spider... but mostly because now they'll have to dispose of the body.
  • Evil Genius: Henry narrates early on how, when the authorities get wind of Jimmy's hijacking enterprise and escalate police investigations on him, he turns the police into partners by buying them off. He's also the mastermind behind the Lufthansa heist.
  • Fatal Flaw: As mentioned above, his solution for any problem is to kill the ones involved, forcing Henry to turn against him when he realizes that he's become a liability.
  • For the Evulz: Jimmy is into crime not out of greed but for the mere thrill of it all. In the book, Henry remarks that if you ever offered Jimmy a billion dollars to stop stealing, he’d turn you down and then try to figure out how to steal it from you.
  • Four Eyes, Zero Soul: He puts on glasses before he tries sending Henry to Florida to "kill a rat". He keeps them on for the rest of the movie.
  • Greed: Is much more driven by greed than the other members of the crew, and one of the Berserk Buttons that breaks his Faux Affably Evil persona is people not paying him money they owe him. When he murders most of the other people responsible for the Lufthansa heist, it's partially because he's afraid they'll be a liability, and partially just because he'd rather keep their share of the money for himself.
  • The Heavy: His paranoia and decisions directly impact the other characters, and his presence has a lasting impact on the story.
  • Historical Villain Downgrade: The movie leaves out the tiny fact that in real life, Jimmy Burke liked to shake down people by locking their kids in the fridge, or other stuff like cutting his wife's annoying ex-boyfriend into pieces, as well as numerous other murders. He and Paulie also ripped off the robbers and other guys involved in the Lufthansa heist— nobody got more than a $50,000 cut and most got less (out of a $6 million robbery). They still got murdered for the connection. He's also stated to have been violently abusive to his own kids where Jimmy in the film is never implied to act in such a way.
  • Hoist by His Own Petard: When Jimmy finally decides to try to set up Henry to get whacked, he does so by offering him a job to perform a killing in Florida. Since Jimmy had previously never asked Henry to do this for him due to his aversion to killing, this was the final push Henry needed to become an informant for the FBI.
  • Hypocrite: Moreso than the other gangsters. Jimmy can't stand rats or people who are disloyal, and gives a young Henry the lesson to remember who his friends are and keep his mouth shut at all times. But despite preaching otherwise, Jimmy is almost the poster child for No Honor Among Thieves; keeping the lion's share of mutual thefts, treating his so-called "friends" like garbage, and killing anyone who might be a liability.
    • Jimmy also can't stand when people don't pay him money they owe him but he regularly short changes those to whom he owes money and hates having it brought up. That's when he isn't outright having them murdered to keep it all for himself.
    • Tommy killing Spider. Knowing what Tommy's like, Jimmy asks him if he's going to let Spider get away with insulting him; when Tommy shoots Spider, Jimmy is apparently shocked at Tommy for killing him. (Though to be fair, Jimmy didn't expect Tommy to outright kill him for the insult.)
  • The Irish Mob: He mostly works with the Italian-American mob, but he's a full-blooded Irish-American gangster who independently runs his own crew.
  • It's All About Me: Jimmy is concerned only with himself and his own benefit and he has no issue murdering those who've been loyal to him for years prior the second they threaten it.
  • Jerkass: Starts acting a lot more hostile after Tommy's death, dropping most of his Faux Affably Evil traits and acting irritated all the time.
  • Lack of Empathy: Doesn't even care once about the loved ones of the victims his killing sprees leave behind (like Morrie's wife).
    "Who gives a fuck? Tell her he [Morrie] ran off with some broad. What do you [Henry] care about her?"
  • Laser-Guided Karma: Is overjoyed to hear that Tommy is being made, since having a made man in their crew guarantees them the protection and influence of the mafia, essentially allowing them to steal from and kill anyone who isn't made without consequence. But then he and Henry find out the whole thing was a setup to kill Tommy in retaliation for the murder of Billy Batts. And because Batts was a made man and they weren't, there's nothing they can do in retaliation.
  • Manly Tears: When he finds out Tommy's been killed.
  • The Mentor: To young Henry. His advice is even sage-like.
    Jimmy: Never rat on your friends and always keep your mouth shut.
  • Murder Is the Best Solution: Jimmy starts murdering his way through problems after the Lufthansa heist. Whether it's some guy hounding him for money, a possible rat, or simply pure greed, that guy is marked by Jimmy for death.
  • Nice to the Waiter: Zig-zagged. He is quite generous with his tips, but it's in no way an indicator that he's a nice guy. Handing out hundreds casually to servants is just him flaunting his wealth and showing off his high-class mafia lifestyle; in actuality, he doesn't care about people who serve him at all.
  • No-Holds-Barred Beatdown: When he beats Billy Batts with Tommy.
  • No Honor Among Thieves: After the Lufthansa heist, he begins murdering everyone who had something to do with it except Tommy (who gets whacked by someone else first) and Henry (who eventually does make Jimmy's hit list, but escapes).
  • Pet the Dog: Especially as a younger man, he tips generously, and when he steals a truck and warns the driver that he knows where the driver lives, he also slips a few bucks into the guy's wallet before handing it back.
  • Pragmatic Villainy: While Henry has standards, Jimmy tries to minimize unneccessary risks that could jepardize them.
    • Rather than using violence to deal with the cops sent to stop his activities, Jimmy simply makes them partners by offering stolen goods in exchange for information.
    • When Karen and Henry have a falling out, Paulie and Jimmy sit him down for a talk. Jimmy just wants him to get back together with her because she's becoming a liability; while Paulie shares those sentiments, he also wants Henry to patch things up for the kids' sake.
  • Psycho for Hire: As mentioned during his introduction, Jimmy steals because he enjoys it. The profits it brings in are, in his mind, just an added bonus.
  • Sadist: He takes glee in using violence and intimidating his victims.
  • Sanity Slippage: He becomes a lot more paranoid after the Lufthansa heist. This is what leads him to eliminate any links between Lufthansa and himself.
  • Soft-Spoken Sadist: He rarely raises his voice or threatens anyone. He doesn't have to.
  • Surrounded by Idiots: Downplayed, but part of Jimmy's ruthless streak was kicked off by his fellow heist members almost immediately spending exorbitant amounts of money after they pulled off their heist. Jimmy became paranoid that their reckless spending habits was going to lead a trail back to them, so he has all of them except for Henry and Tommy whacked.
  • Took a Level in Jerkass: Becomes more ruthless and unpleasant after the Lufthansa heist. He gets even worse than that after Tommy is killed.
  • Verbal Tic: Tends to repeat his phrases once or twice for emphasis.
  • Vicariously Ambitious: When word gets out that Tommy's gonna get made, he's overjoyed, moreso than even Tommy himself. It's even implied that he'd be willing to be one of Tommy's subordinates ("we'll all be working for this guy someday!").
  • Villain Has a Point: He's right when he points out what a stupid idea it is to start buying expensive cars and fur coats just after a huge heist with everybody watching them.
  • Villainous Breakdown: When he realizes Tommy got killed, he repeatedly smashes the telephone when inside the telephone booth and pushes the booth to the ground and cries about Tommy's death knowing he and Henry can't do nothing about it.
  • Where Are They Now: The epilogue states that he was still in prison by the end of the film. Eventually, though, the real Jimmy Burke died in 1996 before he became eligible for parole.
  • You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: A good part of his murdering almost all his compatriots in the Lufthansa heist was spurred by greed, but Jimmy also legitimately feared that their lavish spending would draw undue attention.

    Paul "Paulie" Cicero 

Paul "Paulie" Cicero

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pauliecicerogoodfellas.png
"Just stay away from the garbage, you know what I mean."

Portrayed By: Paul Sorvino

"Don't make a jerk of me. Just don't do it. Don't do it."

A capo in the Lucchese family who takes Henry under his wing.


  • Adaptational Name Change: He was Paul Vario in real life.
  • Affably Evil: He's a very smooth and charismatic person and comes off as a father figure, especially to Henry.
  • Big Bad Duumvirate: With Jimmy Conway. Paulie is an intelligent, cunning, feared, and respected captain within the Lucchese family, providing direction and leadership to lower-ranking members and associates; whereas Jimmy is a more active and violent associate, carrying out many of the more direct actions. The actions of both characters influence the development of the story and lead to significant consequences for Henry.
  • Bunny-Ears Lawyer: Hates and refuses to own or use a phone, and dislikes large meetings, but is still a very capable capo. These idiosyncrasies help him avoid the cops, as the circle of people he tells things to is very small, and the cops have no phone to wiretap.
  • Death Glare: When Sonny Bunz casually suggests whacking Tommy, Paulie shoots daggers at him.
  • The Don: He's the top-ranking mafioso of the movie, so powerful that he's a Don in all but name, with hundreds of people depending on him. It's downplayed in that he's just a caporegime for the Lucchese family.
  • The Dreaded: Downplayed, but everyone knows not to get on his bad side. His first scene has a group of gangsters messing around before going dead quiet when he shows up.
  • Evil Genius: Easily the most cunning and calculating mobster of them all, surpassing even Jimmy. After all, he runs all the shady business of extortion, embezzlement, and heists from the shadows, and he's completely capable of staying one step ahead of law enforcement and any rival gang.
  • Family-Values Villain: He's a crime boss, but is a good husband and father who makes Henry move back in with Karen and dismisses the idea of them getting divorced by saying "we're not animals".
  • Historical Villain Downgrade: He's depicted as Affably Evil and a rational capo. Henry Hill explains him away as "protection for wiseguys among themselves." Mobster Paul Vario - his Real Life counterpart - had more direct involvement in the nastier (and bloodier) crimes committed by his crew. In Wiseguy (the book the film was based on), Hill recalled seeing Vario attack a barmaid with a baseball bat after she informed his wife they were having an affair. In another instance, Vario was so livid that he sent his men to assault a restaurant's workers after the head waiter spilt wine over his wife and used a dirty rag to clean up the mess. Wiseguy author Nicholas Pileggi writes, "He abhorred unnecessary violence (the kind he hadn't ordered), mainly because it was bad for business." Vario also had an affair with Henry's wife, something that's never even hinted at in the movie.
  • Honorary Uncle: 'Uncle' Paulie and the offspring of the wiseguys have a very avuncular relationship.
  • Horrible Judge of Character: He trusts Henry to tell him the truth explicitly, both in being in the drug trade or not and the whereabouts of Batts. Henry's lying on both counts. When he finds out about Henry's drug business that he was running behind Paulie's back, Paulie is legitimately heartbroken.
  • Large and in Charge: Tall, heavyset, and a capo. It follows.
  • The Leader: Subverted. Paul Cicero wasn't the leader of the Lucchese Family. He was a caporegime, which is a mid-level rank. He's just the highest-ranked character involved in the plot.
  • Normal Fish in a Tiny Pond: Cicero is a mere capo rather than the boss, the underboss, or the consigliere of the Lucchese family, but he is still the most powerful mafia member that appears in the story.
  • Only Sane Man: Of the major mobster we meet, he is easily the most rational and level-headed, treating his work as a legitimate business to be taken seriously. He lacks Henry's hedonism and immature view of mafia life, Jimmy's greed and recklessness and Tommy's violent temper and need to prove himself.
  • Parental Substitute: Henry sees Paul as a better father figure than his own father. When Paul disowns him for lying about his drug deals, it became one of the few key factors that caused Henry to rat.
  • Pragmatic Villainy: Paulie runs a tight ship and tries to cut down on any excesses that could cause trouble.
    • Downplayed with his request to have Henry go back to Karen. While he agrees with Jimmy that Karen breaking it off could make her a liability, he also wants Henry to stay for his daughters' sake.
    • He forbids Henry from dealing drugs. While he tells Henry that selling drugs in prison is understandable, as he had to do what he could, dealing in the open could bring a lot of unwanted attention to them. It's less a "drugs are wrong" thing and more about how the feds crack down harsher on drug dealers and bring down people connected to them. Paulie doesn't want to take the risk.
    • While he thinks Tommy's a good kid, he warns Henry about associating with him and Jimmy. Jimmy's too ambitious and in for himself, while Tommy's reckless and crazy.
  • Properly Paranoid: Paulie goes to great lengths to avoid getting pinched by the cops, only giving orders in one-on-one situations and refusing to ever use a phone. He also orders his underlings to never deal drugs, as it adds greater risk of getting pinched for everyone. His downfall is that they didn’t listen to him.
  • Reasonable Authority Figure: As close as you would get in the Mafia. He trusts his men implicitly, and when he is forced to turn his back on Henry for dealing drugs, he is more hurt than angry.
  • So Proud of You: After the heist from JFK Airport, Henry pays a large tribute of it to Paulie. Paulie says he's proud of how far Henry's come in life and gives him a hug.
  • The Stoic: Paulie is always quiet and reserved and keeps his cards close to his chest.
  • Taught by Experience: He's very aware that drugs can bring the whole thing down because he knows of a fellow old wiseguy who was arrested just for greeting some drug dealer, or so Paulie says. He also has an aversion to telephones and personal meetings, hinting he knows about wiretapping and criminal conspiracy cases.
  • Where Are They Now: The epilogue states that he died in 1988 while still in prison.

    Tommy DeVito 

Tommy DeVito

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tommydevitogoodfellas.jpg
"Funny how? How am I funny?"

Portrayed By: Joe Pesci, Joseph D'Onofrio (young)

"He's hanging on my neck like a vulture. What do you want?"

A longtime associate of the Lucchese family and aspiring made man. Violent, hot-headed, petty, and willing to pull the trigger at the slightest provocation (or even for fun when drunk), his volatile temper and impulsive actions always unleash chaos.


  • Adaptational Ugliness: The real Tommy was 6'2", had long hair and a mustache, was built like a boxer and as shown by this photo could have been described as ruggedly handsome.
  • Adaptational Name Change: He was Thomas DeSimone in real life.
  • Affably Evil: Quite possibly his only redeeming quality. When he's in a good mood, Tommy can be very charming, entertaining, funny, and always ready for a joke, which makes him likable to some extent. However, that doesn't take away from the fact that he is also an extremely violent and dangerous mobster. It helps that, for all his faults, Tommy genuinely cares about his friends ("I didn't want to get blood on your floor") and is emphatically loyal to them in a life where loyalty and covering for each other is everything.
  • Age Lift: In real life, Tommy was killed at age 28. Joe Pesci was in his late 40s at the time this film was made, and it's suggested that Tommy DeVito is also in his 40s since he's known Henry and Jimmy for at least a couple of decades.
  • Alas, Poor Villain: When he realizes too late he's gotta answer for what he did to Billy Batts...
  • Asshole Victim: Even Henry did not look so sad when he learns of his death.
  • Ax-Crazy: His randomly violent behavior is largely whimsical, or even driven by pure sadistic amusement, especially when he's drunk. From killing without provocation to explosive outbursts, his unpredictable and dangerous behavior, coupled with a lack of discretion, prompts The Mafia itself to decide to take him out.
  • Badass Boast: After killing Spider, Tommy tries to use the line "I'm a good shot" as one. It doesn't fly, as there is nothing badass to brag about. Even one generic mobster is unafraid to call it out: "How could you miss at this distance?"
  • Badass in a Nice Suit: Being an Ax-Crazy Psycho for Hire doesn't stop him from dressing up tight.
  • Berserk Button:
    • Almost anything, but special mention goes to Billy Batts telling him to "Go get your shinebox." The beating he gave Batts looked like it almost brought him to tears. invoked
    • In general, anything that can be construed as a put-down or humiliation (especially if it's in front of his friends) sets Tommy off severely. Billy Batts' comments piss him off largely because the exchange happens in front of all his friends and his date of the evening. Likewise, the first time he shoots Spider (in the foot, for not hearing him when he demanded a drink) he's just playing around. When Spider directly insults him in front of his friends, Tommy calmly and intently shoots him in the heart.
  • Big Bad Wannabe: Despite all his violence and bravado, he's still an unintelligent, small-time thug who will inevitably be killed for his irrationality, making him less of a threat and more of a violent bully.
  • Boom, Headshot!: Tommy is murdered with a bullet to the skull, coincidentally having done the same to Stacks a few scenes prior.
  • Brooklyn Rage: He's from Brooklyn and his Hair-Trigger Temper is animalistic and legendary.
  • Character Death: Gets whacked because of the murder of Billy Batts.
  • Cold-Blooded Torture: Practically, the brutal murder of Billy Batts is this, invoked especially considering that he did not die until Tommy stabbed him with a knife.
  • Comedic Sociopath: At least In-Universe.
  • Comically Missing the Point: After beating the living shit out of Billy Batts in Henry's own bar, he sheepishly says to Henry "I didn't want to get blood on your floor." As opposed to, like, sign his own death warrant by brutally killing a made guy, just because the guy was being obnoxious.
  • Composite Character: He's a combination of three real people: Thomas DeSimone, Leonard "Lenny" Vario,note  and Paul Vario Jr., though he only fills in Lenny's role in helping Henry moving cigarettes as a kid, and then Paul's role in introducing Henry to Karen. The rest of him is based on DeSimone.
  • Crazy Jealous Guy: Orders his girlfriend not to even speak to another man.
  • Deadpan Snarker: Well yeah, he is a funny guy after all.
  • Disproportionate Retribution: This is one of the reasons why Tommy performs many of his horrible actions. Special mention goes to shooting Spider in the foot because he was slow getting his drink.
  • The Dreaded: Big time, even to his friends. Just look at how silent Henry and company went when they thought he got angry with Henry. Subverted in that despite his fearsome reputation, he's still just a low-level Mook in the grand scheme of things, to the point where the big bosses think nothing of rubbing him out when he gets too far out of line.
  • Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas: He shows at least a trace of humanity thanks to his relationship with his mother.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: His loving relationship with his mother is one of his only redeeming traits; he makes an effort to keep her happy and visits her often. To a lesser extent his relationship with Henry and Jimmy fits this too, as they're the only people he's not shown as being violent or enraged with even when they give him shit. He even apologizes for getting blood on the floor of a restaurant Henry owns (said blood being there from him beating Billy Batts half to death).
  • Fatal Flaw: His inability to control his temper and general belief that he can act however he wants with no consequence ended up getting him killed.
  • For the Evulz: The only explanation for his randomly sadistic and violent behavior when unprovoked and under the influence of excessive alcohol. His verbal and physical abuse of Spider is because he wants to and can, for his own sadistic entertainment.
  • The Friend Nobody Likes: Aside from Jimmy (and to an extent Henry), it gradually becomes clear that nobody in the mob genuinely likes Tommy. Even Paulie refers to him as a bad seed.
  • Hair-Trigger Temper: Tommy will fly into explosive fits of anger over just about anything and always in the most extreme way. He shot a young man in the foot for forgetting to get him a drink, and later shot the kid to death for standing up to him over the previous incident. He also killed a made man for insulting him in front of his date.
  • Hate Sink: Easily the vilest, most despicable character in the whole film. The man is a confrontational psycho who disturbingly teases or antagonizes people for very petty reasons. He's kind of feared even by his own partners (as evidenced by the "funny guy" scene), because they know that any misunderstood word or phrase can easily lead to a senseless murder. He certainly crosses this territory with the cruel treatment of Spider (a 19-ish year old boy), shooting him in the foot with a sadistic glee, then ruthlessly killing him after Spider bites back.
  • Historical Villain Downgrade: His real life counterpart, Tommy DeSimone, was even nastier than he's portrayed. According to Hill, he killed random strangers just to try out new guns. Allegedly, the final straw that led to his murder was when he tried to rape Karen Hill while her husband was in prison. Karen was having a sexual affair with Paul Vario at the time, and when she told Vario, he informed the Gambinos (the crime family that Billy Batts was a made member of) of Tommy's role in Billy Batts' death.
  • Hypocrite: Tommy is offended when one of his girlfriends states she has a problem with dating Italians (which Tommy is), but when another girlfriend calls Sammy Davis Jr. "handsome", he is disgusted because said man is black.
  • Jerkass: Tommy is an aggressive, unpredictable and moody psycho who generally acts unpleasantly and loves to antagonize others.
  • Killed Mid-Sentence: "Oh n--"
  • Laughably Evil: Tommy really is a funny guy... except when you say so to his face.
  • The Millstone: Most of the trouble the main characters get into is because Tommy would shoot anybody for so much as looking at him funny. Arguably a deconstruction of the Trope, since Tommy's tendency to cause more problems than he solves just winds up getting him killed by his own bosses.
  • The Napoleon: By default due to Pesci's actual stature. The real-life inspiration, Tommy DeSimone, was a large, beefy guy. It's pointed out exactly once when he tells a story about being beaten by a cop: "Gee, I wish I was big just once!"
  • Nasty to the Waiter: In contrast to his friends, Tommy is shown abusing servers instead of handing out generous tips. When one waiter doesn't hear Tommy ask for a drink and comes to the table without it, Tommy angrily berates him before shooting him in the foot.
  • Nightmare Fuel Station Attendant: He's this when he's casually speaking.
    Tommy: You mean, let me understand this cause, ya know maybe it's me, I'm a little fucked up maybe, but I'm funny how, I mean funny like I'm a clown, I amuse you? I make you laugh, I'm here to fuckin' amuse you? What do you mean funny, funny how? How am I funny?
    Henry: Just... you know, how you tell the story, what?
    Tommy: No, no, I don't know, you said it. How do I know? You said I'm funny. How the fuck am I funny, what the fuck is so funny about me? Tell me, tell me what's funny!
    Henry: [long pause] Get the fuck out of here, Tommy!
    Tommy: [everyone laughs] Ya motherfucker! I almost had him, I almost had him. Ya stuttering prick, ya. Frankie, was he shaking? I wonder about you sometimes, Henry. You may fold under questioning.
  • Oh, Crap!: When Tommy sees that the room Tuddy is bringing him into is empty and realizes that his making ceremony is actually an execution, seconds before he gets whacked.
  • Old Shame: In-Universe. He is embarrassed that he was a shoe shine boy when he was a kid. Bringing this up is guaranteed to piss him off big time.
  • Politically Incorrect Villain: He has a very low opinion of Jews and blacks. He also opposes interracial relationships, even though he had previously complained that his future girlfriend has prejudices against Italians.
  • Psycho for Hire: Essentially nothing more than a vicious underling of Jimmy.
  • Psychopathic Manchild: Even more than Henry. Tommy exhibits a highly impulsive personality, frequently making hasty judgments without considering the consequences. In essence, his behavior mirrors that of an irate, narcissistic teenager rather than a grown adult. Moreover, the harsh treatment toward Spider reflects more of a juvenile sadism than genuine anger.
  • Rags to Riches: His background isn't explored in depth, but it's likely that his family wasn't particularly well-off either.
  • Rambunctious Italian: The most emotion-driven of the main trio, thanks to his Hair-Trigger Temper, and also the only full-blooded Italian among them.
  • Reckless Gun Usage: Pointing a loaded gun at someone's face for fun is his idea of a joke. And that's when it's one of his closest friends.
  • Sadist: He has no qualms about violence and clearly enjoys it.
  • Sir Swears-a-Lot: It's Joe Pesci, after all.
  • The Sociopath: He may come across as a complete psychopath, but it's hard to tell, given that he's a loving son and seems to genuinely care for Jimmy and Henry, which instead lowers him to a sociopath. Furthermore, his Real Life counterpart was way worse, but still fell within the criteria of anti-social personality disorder.
  • Stupid Evil: Most of his most heinous acts have nothing to do with the mob's business. In fact, his lack of common sense and inability to think about the consequences of his actions is what led him to his inevitable execution.
  • Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Killing a made man and high ranking mob boss in a fit of anger and generally being a volatile and violently unstable lunatic is a very good way to drastically shorten your life expectancy.
  • Too Dumb to Live: After killing Billy, spending decades demonstrating that he simply could not muster any form of self-control, and showing everyone that he could never be trusted to simply stop and take a moment and think, the stupid son-of-a-bitch actually thought he was going to get made.
  • Tranquil Fury: After Spider tells Tommy go fuck himself, Tommy says nothing and simply stares in silence as everyone else laughs and Jimmy jokes about his lack of reaction. Then he pulls out his gun and shoots Spider dead.

Supporting Cast

    Karen Friedman Hill 

Karen Friedman Hill

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/gal_gf_lorraine_bracco_jpg.jpg
"None of it seemed like crimes. Henry was just enterprising. Our husbands weren't brain surgeons, just blue-collar guys. The only way they could make real extra money was to go out and cut corners."

Portrayed By: Lorraine Bracco

"I remember, she was screaming on the street and I mean loud. But she looked good. She had these great eyes, just like Liz Taylor's."

Henry's Jewish wife.


  • All Girls Want Bad Boys: As she puts it herself:
    Karen: I know there are women, like my best friends, who would have gotten out of there the minute their boyfriend gave them a gun to hide. But I didn't. I got to admit the truth. It turned me on.
  • Brainy Brunette: She proves herself to be very smart throughout the film, like when she flushes drugs down toilet when the narcs are about to raid the house and when she leaves when it looks like Jimmy’s about to kill her
  • Berserk Button: Henry's infidelities. Finding out about his first infidelity has her harass his (first) mistress, Janice Rossi, and aim a gun in her husband's face. For contrast, she's fine with all of Henry's numerous other flaws, including his disappearing for days at a time, his cocaine addiction, his using her for a drug mule, and his intense selfishness.
  • Clingy Jealous Girl: Bordering on yandere levels. She pointed a gun in Henry's face when she found out he was cheating on her.
  • Historical Villain Downgrade: Karen is depicted as a faithful if aggravated wife in regards to Henry's constant affairs. In reality, she was also having affairs, in particular with Paulie.
  • Jewish American Princess: Her parents are members of a country club, so she fits the trope.
  • Love Martyr: She admits that, in spite of Henry's flaws and infidelities, she is still very attracted to him, and couldn't bring herself to leave him (or shoot him).
  • Morality Chain: Not that Henry is exactly a good person, but Karen is this for him: from the first moment that he really notices her in the street, she is depicted as being the only character he really cares for beside himself. Consider what happens in the two times in the film that somebody else really scares Karen: Bruce sexually assaulting her, and Jimmy making her think he's going to kill her. The first time, Henry pistol-whips the guy, and the second time, Henry turns state's evidence and sells out all his old mob colleagues.
  • Narrator: She provides the wives' and girlfriends' perspective of gangster life.
  • Pragmatic Hero: Anti-heroine version. The other wives curse at the cops who come to search their houses and generally harass them, but Karen thinks it's ridiculous to make such a fuss, since it's just an occupational hazard of earning your money from crime. She's polite to the cops and even offers them coffee.
  • Precision F-Strike: While avoiding any major swear words throughout the film, she lets out a religious exclamation at the top of her voice upon confronting Janice Rossi, one of Henry's mistresses, over her apartment intercom by telling her to "Get your own Goddamn man!"
  • Pretty in Mink: Wears a mink coat when she meets Henry when he's released from prison.
  • Screw This, I'm Outta Here: Karen realizes that Jimmy is setting her up for murder (or worse) when he directs her to an apparently abandoned store down a dark, lonely street, where she faintly hears hushed whispers. She wisely beats feet the hell out of there.
  • Sean Connery Is About to Shoot You: We the audience are treated to this via Henry's perspective and Karen straddling him while pointing Henry's gun.
  • Victoria's Secret Compartment: When the FBI raids the Hills' house, Karen hides Henry's pistol in her panties.
  • Where Are They Now: The epilogue states that Karen separated from Henry in 1989. Later, the real Karen divorced him in 2002.
  • Wounded Gazelle Gambit: She plays herself off as an innocent victim to the prosecutor when the district attorney tell her she'll be in grave danger if she doesn't go into witness protection with Henry. The DA doesn't fall for it and calls her out on it.

    William "Billy Batts" Bentvena 

William "Billy Batts" Bentvena

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/dd0a1d470334c57b960032ca87d6d122650x694x1.jpg
"If I was gonna break your balls, I'd say, 'Go get your shine box'."

Portrayed By: Frank Vincent

"Batts was part of the Gambino crew and considered untouchable. Before you touched a made guy, you needed a good reason. You had to get an okay... or you'd get whacked."

A Made Man in the Gambino crew who comes into conflict with Tommy.


  • Ain't Too Proud to Beg: His last words are weakly asking Tommy not to kill him.
  • Alas, Poor Villain: Sure, he is a criminal himself, but seeing him brutally killed over such a petty reason....
  • Alliterative Name: Billy Batts.
  • Asshole Victim: Downplayed Trope. He's a prick and may have taken his ribbing of Tommy too far, but it's not really a valid reason for Tommy (and Jimmy) to brutally murder him.
  • Boisterous Weakling: Downplayed. He deliberately provokes Tommy, goading him into a fight, and then further brags about having "fucked guys like him in the ass" while in prison. He then goes down to both Jimmy and Tommy without even putting up a fight. However, aside from being taken by surprise by two men, he was also heavily inebriated, which apparently weakened his ability to even defend himself.
  • Disposing of a Body: His has to be disposed twice, as the original burial site is going to be constructed upon and the package has to be moved before it is discovered.
  • Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Shortly before his death, an inebriated Billy mentions that he has a family who depends on him to put food on the table. Said family ends up fatherless before the opening title sequence.
  • Jerkass: As much of a Hair-Trigger Temper as Tommy is, he was willing to let the shoe-shine cracks slide at first. Billy was the one who kept pushing his buttons as hard as he could.
  • Made of Iron: Despite being kicked and pistol-whipped multiple times, he turns out to be still alive later on. It then takes several stabs and gunshots to the chest to put him down for good.
  • Never My Fault: Refuses to admit any responsibility at all for the part he played in his fight with Tommy.
  • Rasputinian Death: Beaten within an inch of his life, stabbed multiple times, thrown into the trunk of a car for several hours, stabbed again, then finally shot repeatedly.
  • Small Role, Big Impact: Billy is a made man who dies at the hands of the protagonists. He seems to be a throwaway character, but his death is what gets Tommy whacked.
  • Smug Snake: He's a made guy, and you can tell he acts as though it means he can do or say anything. He goes well out of his way to push Tommy's buttons, thinking that his status will scare Tommy and Jimmy enough not to retaliate. He's wrong.
  • Punk in the Trunk: After the beating he gets at Henry's bar, they thrown him into the trunk of Jimmy's car to bury him later. It turns out he's Not Quite Dead, so Henry opens the trunk, Tommy stabs the man eight times and Jimmy shoots Batts four times for good. The foul smell stays in the trunk until Henry cleans it.
  • Too Dumb to Live: Even granting that he knew his rank above Tommy meant he couldn't (safely) do anything about it, one really has to wonder what kind of idiot thought slamming the biggest Berserk Button of a guy so notoriously psychotic that his own friends are terrified of him would be good for a laugh. On top of that, he hangs around until closing time at the bar run by a good friend of the guy he insulted, chatting it up with yet another friend of Tommy, all with his back to the door and alone.
  • Two Aliases, One Character: Aside from "Billy Batts," authorities speculated that William Bentvena was actually another alias for the Real Life Billy Batts, and that his real name was actually William Devino. This is unproven, though, and the latter may have instead been his second alias.
  • We Hardly Knew Ye: He shows up one night at Henry's to celebrate his homecoming party after some years in the can, only to be shortly murdered.
  • Worf Had the Flu: He was very drunk when Tommy and Jimmy attacked him, which helps explain why he couldn't put up much of a fight.

    Morrie Kessler 

Morrie Kessler

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/morrie_200x300.jpg
"Morrie's wigs don't come off!"

Portrayed By: Chuck Low

"That's when I knew, Jimmy was gonna whack Morrie. That's how it happens. That's how fast it takes for a guy to get whacked."

A Jewish associate who first tipped Jimmy off about the Lufthansa heist.


  • Adaptational Name Change: He is based on Martin "Marty" Krugman.
  • Dodgy Toupee: His wig comes off when Jimmy beats him for his money.
  • Foreshadowing: Right before he is killed, he, Jimmy, Tommy, and Frankie enter a car. The latter three all shut their doors in unison, while Morrie lags behind with his, demonstrating that he is out of the loop with them.
  • The Friend Nobody Likes: He fraternizes with Jimmy's crew, and seems to think he's in good with them, but with the exception of Henry, they can hardly put up with him.
  • Hope Spot: Jimmy seemingly indicates to Henry that Jimmy is calling off the hit on Morrie, putting Henry at ease and even making Henry celebrate that Morrie was saved in his internal monologue. In reality Jimmy just decided not to include Henry as part of the kill, and shortly afterwards Jimmy leads Morrie to his death.
  • In the Back: Tommy dispatches him by jamming an ice pick into the back of his head.
  • Irony: A commercial of his claims that his wigs don't come off while Morrie does various stunts to prove it. Meanwhile, Morrie's wig comes off fairly easily while he's being beaten.
  • Morality Pet: To Henry, who tries to ease Jimmy out of whacking him.
  • Motor Mouth: Lampshaded by Tommy: "Thought he'd never shut the fuck up."
  • Retirony: When he speaks about his plans for the Lufthansa Heist, he mentions that with the money he could retire. Needless to say, he doesn't get the chance.
  • Surprisingly Sudden Death: Henry frets over Morrie's fate and is relieved when Jimmy decides to spare him; the narration suggests that Morrie will exit the story unaware of how close he came to death. In the very next scene, Morrie is murdered by Jimmy and his goons anyway.
  • Too Dumb to Live: He drags his feet in paying back a debt to Jimmy, and even mocks him right in earshot, prompting a beating. Later, though more downplayed, he unrelentingly needles Jimmy for his cut in the Lufthansa heist. Even though he understandably wanted his money for the role he played, it's not a good idea to pressure someone like Jimmy for anything.

    Spider 

Spider

https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/spider_goodfellas_pictureboxart_160w.jpg
"Why don't you go fuck yourself, Tommy?"

Portrayed By: Michael Imperioli

"I can't believe what I heard. This is for you, Spider. I got respect for this kid. He's got a lot of balls. Good. Don't take shit from nobody!"

A hapless waiter who works at Jimmy's bar.



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