 Joe Pesci (qv) originally auditioned for Max, but Sergio Leone  convinced him that he wouldnt be quite "right" for the part. As a  favor to Pescis friend Robert De Niro (the star of the film), Leone  told Pesci that he could pick whichever of the available roles he  wanted as his own instead. He chose the part of Frankie, which was  considerably larger in the original script than it is in the  finished movie.