20 Things You Didn't Know About Goodfellas
18. The "Funny, How?" Scene Wasn't In The Script (And Was Based On Joe Pesci's Real Experience)
Although it's arguably the most well-known scene of the entire film, the "Funny How?" scene wasn't actually in the script.
In fact, the moment is based on an experience that actor Joe Pesci had when he was working at a restaurant. As we all know from the film, Hill (Ray Liotta) tells Tommy (Joe Pesci) that he's funny, to which Tommy has a less-than-enthused reaction.
Pesci said something along those lines to a mobster at the restaurant one night, and he got a similarly unenthusiastic response.
Once Pesci relayed the anecdote to Martin Scorsese, he decided to include it in the film. However, Scorsese chose not to include the scene in the shooting script, so as to elicit genuine shocked reactions from the cast.