Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
"Deadlock Don" Breaks Omerta, Making Movie Of His Life
By
Ben Yakas
Published Sep 22, 2010
Modified Sep 22, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Ben Yakas
Published Sep 22, 2010
Modified Sep 22, 2010
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
If watching "Deadlock Don" John Gotti Jr. gracefully maneuver his way to four hung juries over the last five years was as entertaining for you as it was for us, then you'll be happy to learn that Gotti has sold his life rights to Hollywood. Finally, there'll be new work for Paulie Walnuts!
The son of the Gambino crime family leader has agreed to a deal with the independent production company Fiore Films to make a film about his life. Gotti told AP that he's simultaneously working on a book and a screenplay with actor-writer Leo Rossi (who has "carved a niche" for himself by saying the line "Hey, college boy" in several films), and plans on being heavily involved with the production: "It's going to be filmed in New York, I've been working on it in New York, we can be an active player in the situation from start to finish...This is not a mob story. That's one misconception. This is a father-son story."
Sylvester Stallone has already expressed interest in directing and starring-in the film, which Gotti envisions as beginning with the final meeting he had with his father in 1999, when he told the senior Gotti, who was dying of throat cancer in prison, that he was walking away from the business. It's already got us thinking about some of our favorite moments from the trials, from the seances to the unforgettable diva Juror 7, who didn't want the "phony" people speaking to her (may we suggest Gwyneth Paltrow since she's already got the irritating part down?).
Tagged
deadlock don
hollywood
john gotti jr
mafia
movies
sylvester stallone
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Central Park birders, others remember 63-year-old woman killed in park
People who said they knew her described her as an artist and a familiar presence in the Ramble.
By
Charles Lane
Published Sep 28, 2026 at 7:04 p.m. ET
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
News
Dump truck driver hits and kills cyclist on 34th Street in Midtown, NYPD says
It's the latest in a string of hit-and-run deaths in the city in recent months.
By
Liam Quigley
New ingredient mandated for Latin American kitchen, restaurant plates in NJ
By
Arya Sundaram
A Brooklyn jail cell filled with smoke. The emergency button failed, a lawyer said.
By
Samantha Max
Crews launch tunnel machines to dig first new Hudson River rail tunnels since 1910
By
Michael Sol Warren
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .