Cocaine Bear: Final Ray Liotta film had just announced official release date

The Elizabeth Banks-helmed movie is set to come out on 24 February 2023

Cocaine Bear, one of the last films made by the late Ray Liotta, had announced its official release date only a few weeks before the actor’s death.

The film, which is directed by Elizabeth Banks, is due for a cinema release on 24 February 2023, Universal confirmed earlier this month.

Based on a true story, it will tell of a 1985 incident in which a 175 pound black bear was found next to a duffel bag that had once been filled with more than 70 pounds of cocaine before it was hurled from a drug smuggler’s plane. You can read the full story of what happened here.

Liotta’s final Instagram post was about the movie, with the star writing: “Cocaine Bear follows an oddball group of cops, criminals, tourists and teens converging in a Georgia forest where a 500-pound apex predator has ingested a staggering amount of the white powder and goes on a coke-fueled rampage seeking more blow — and blood.”

Cocaine Bear is Banks’ third feature after directing Charlie’s Angels in 2019 and Pitch Perfect 3 in 2015.

The film also stars Keri Russell, Margo Martindale, Alden Ehrenreich, O’Shea Jackson Jr and Jesse Tyler.

Liotta’s death at the age of 67 was reported earlier today (26 May). Liotta, who was best known for his leading role in Martin Scorsese’s 1990 crime classic Goodfellas, died in his sleep in the Dominican Republic while shooting a new film, according to Deadline.

The actor was in the Dominican Republic filming a project entitled Dangerous Waters.

Liotta was also set to star in French director Coralie Fargeat’s feminist body horror The Substance, alongside Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley.