1980
Raging Bull
Plays Joey LaMotta and earns an Oscar nomination.
FLM.REDJOE
PESCI
โจ เพสซี
From crime dramas to comedy
The actor behind Goodfellas, Home Alone and The Irishman.
Newark, New Jersey, USA
A screen presence that shifts with the story
Joe Pesci is an American actor and musician born in Newark, New Jersey, on 9 February 1943. His career moves between music, comedy and film roles that range from volatile criminals to characters played for laughs.
Pesci worked in music and entertainment before gaining wider attention as Joey LaMotta in Martin Scorsese’s Raging Bull (1980). Playing the brother of Robert De Niro’s Jake LaMotta earned him an Academy Award nomination for supporting actor.
He reunited with Scorsese and De Niro for Goodfellas (1990), playing Tommy DeVito. The performance won him the supporting-actor Oscar and remains central to his association with crime films.
The same year, Home Alone introduced another side of his screen persona: Harry, one of the burglars outwitted by a child. My Cousin Vinny (1992) gave him a leading comic role as a lawyer facing an unfamiliar courtroom.
Pesci later appeared in Casino (1995) and returned to work with Scorsese in The Irishman (2019), playing Russell Bufalino and receiving another Oscar nomination. His quieter work in the latter sits alongside the explosive energy of earlier roles.
Selected performances
1990
Goodfellas
Wins the supporting-actor Oscar as Tommy DeVito.
1990
Home Alone
Plays Harry, one of the burglars.
2019
The Irishman
Plays Russell Bufalino and earns another Oscar nomination.
Performance readings are FLM.RED editorial interpretation.
Films in FLM.RED
Titles in this collection; not a complete filmography.
Sources & image notes
- Golden Globes — biography and credits
- Biography.com — career and Goodfellas
- AllMusic — music and acting career
- IMDb — selected credits
Portrait illustration: FLM.RED.