Trivia / Gotti (1996)

• Ability over Appearance: Some reviews made at the time of the film's release point out that while the film went to pains to get actors who bore a passing resemblance to the real-life individuals they were playing, William Forsythe doesn't look much like Sammy "The Bull" Gravano, an otherwise short and stocky former boxer. The same goes for Richard C. Sarafian, who plays the role of Paul Castellano — the real character was tall and thin, while the character in the film is short and obese.
• California Doubling: Toronto, Ontario takes the place of New York City in most shots that aren't skyline footage, while the cast boasts a surprising number of Canadian character actors.
• Colbert Bump: The film received a boost of popularity after Michael Franzese (the former caporegime of the Colombo crime family, now a motivational speaker and writer) reviewed the film on his Youtube series Mob Movie Mondays, calling it one of the most faithful adaptations of the real-life events that inspired it.
• Method Acting: Assante put on 35 pounds to act as the titular crime boss.
• Typecasting: Longtime mob movie regular Frank Vincent (Casino and Goodfellas, among many others) returns to familiar territory as D.B. DiBernardo, a high-level Gambino family member who is ultimately betrayed and assassinated by Gotti and Gravano.

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