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Get acquainted with legal processes and uncover fascinating details about My Cousin Vinny—the iconic 1992 comedy where a novice, out-of-his-depth attorney defends two young men wrongly accused of murder in his debut courtroom trial. (Note: Some clips contain strong language!)
1. The inspiration for My Cousin Vinny came from a man striving to pass the bar exam.
My Cousin Vinny originated from one of screenwriter Dale Launer's earliest concepts. “Back in the early '70s, I met someone who ... was awaiting his bar exam results,” he shared with ABA Journal in 2012. Launer inquired about the consequences of failing, and the man responded that he could retake it repeatedly until he succeeded. “So I asked, 'What’s the record for the most attempts before passing?'” Launer remembered. “He said, 'Thirteen times.' ... I always imagined that person, after 13 attempts, might still be practicing law somewhere. How would you feel if you discovered that person was your attorney? ... What if you were accused of a crime and stuck with what seemed like the least competent lawyer in the nation?”
2. Dale Launer embarked on a Southern road trip to gather material for the My Cousin Vinny screenplay.
As detailed in the biography on his website, Launer traveled through the South to conduct research for the script. Starting in New Orleans, he drove across Mississippi and Alabama, exploring the Gulf Coast. The journey offered rich material for the film: his car became mired in mud, grits were a staple on every diner menu, and he encountered the haunting cry of screech owls. He even consulted with a district attorney in Butler, who bore a striking resemblance to Lane Smith—later cast as the DA in Vinny.
Another key influence was the demeanor of the locals he encountered. They were “exceptionally warm and accommodating,” the bio notes, “but when he mentioned he was filming a movie set in the South, they grew uneasy—worried Hollywood might portray them as unsophisticated. This concern also found its way into the narrative.”
3. Robert De Niro was Launer’s top pick for the role of Vinny Gambini.
Grant Lamos IV/Getty Images for the 2015 Tribeca Film FestivalOnce the screenplay was completed, a casting meeting was held, and Launer met with Fox’s top executives. When Launer proposed Robert De Niro for the role of Vincent LaGuardia Gambini, “the president seemed uneasy, almost embarrassed by my suggestion,” Launer recalled in an interview with Writer Unboxed. “‘De Niro, uh … well … he’s not known for comedy. And … his films don’t perform well at the box office.’ … Ironically, the only De Niro films that succeed financially these days are comedies! So, I feel justified. I just wish I’d received a hefty bonus for being proven right.”
4. Jonathan Lynn, the director of My Cousin Vinny, had never watched The Karate Kid before casting Ralph Macchio as Bill Gambini.
“I was really keen on having Ralph Macchio in the film,” Lynn mentioned in the DVD commentary. “I must admit, I hadn’t seen The Karate Kid at the time. I reviewed a few clips his agent sent over and thought he was ideal for the role. … He delivers a fantastic performance in the movie.”
5. Joe Pesci drew inspiration for Vinny from characters in his own neighborhood.
“Growing up in New Jersey, I knew plenty of folks like Vinny, so I combined a few of those personalities to create him,” Pesci explained to The Movie Show in 1992.
6. The studio originally planned to remove Mona Lisa Vito from My Cousin Vinny.
In 2007, Launer revealed to Writer Unboxed that the studio had considered cutting Vinny’s girlfriend, a car-savvy, unemployed hairdresser with a love for Chinese food. To save the character, Launer added a scene in the second draft, as requested by the studio president: “He wanted Mona Lisa to complain about Vinny neglecting her,” Launer said. “I’ve always disliked those clichéd scenes where the protagonist’s partner whines about being ignored. They’re tedious and make you want to skip ahead. Just awful.”
Eventually, Launer found a way to ensure her character stayed, enhancing her role. “She does voice her concerns, but she also apologizes for bringing it up, making it humorous rather than annoying. I thought if she brought it up during Vinny’s most stressful moment, he’d react angrily—and he does. It adds tension.” Mona Lisa’s “biological clock” monologue became one of his favorite moments in the script.
7. Will Smith was considered for the role of Stan Rothenstein in My Cousin Vinny.
Mitchell Whitfield had recently relocated to Los Angeles from New York when he learned about the My Cousin Vinny auditions—happening back in New York. He flew back for the screen test. “Interestingly, Will Smith was also in the running for the role,” Whitfield shared with Abnormal Use. “So, they were clearly open to different interpretations of the character. ... I think either choice would have worked well.” Whitfield had to shed 25 pounds to portray Stan.
8. The studio took a gamble on Marisa Tomei.
Tomei had limited film experience when she was cast as Mona Lisa Vito. “I’d seen her on the set of Oscar, working with John Landis, and joined him in the editing room to review her performance,” Lynn recalled in the DVD commentary. “She was playing a 1920s flapper, a completely different role, but her comedic talent was undeniable. After a fantastic audition, we convinced the studio to let us cast this relatively unknown actress. It turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.” Lynn knew she was perfect for the role after seeing the dailies from her first scene—Mona Lisa and Vinny’s arrival in Alabama, where she quips, “Oh, yeah, you blend.”
9. Marisa Tomei is a Brooklyn native, but her real-life accent differs from Mona Lisa’s.
Tomei grew up in Flatbush, Brooklyn, so “I was very familiar with the neighborhood,” she told
10. The depiction of the legal system in My Cousin Vinny is remarkably accurate.
Lynn, who holds a law degree from Cambridge University, mentioned in the DVD commentary, “I get extremely frustrated when films misrepresent legal procedures.” Alongside Launer’s research, Lynn made specific adjustments to ensure the courtroom scenes were authentic. “I’m proud that, while the film is comedic, every legal aspect shown is plausible and mostly accurate,” he said. “Ironically, that makes it even more unsettling.” Lynn even observed a murder trial in Monticello, Georgia, which inspired the courtroom set. “Some lines in the Vinny trial were lifted directly from that case,” he noted, including Lane Smith’s pronunciation of 'heinous' (“high-a-nus”) and his reference to “our little old ancestors” in his opening statement.
11. Vinny was originally written as dyslexic in My Cousin Vinny.
In the initial script, when questioned about failing the bar exam multiple times, Vinny explains, “I’m a little dyslexic.” This trait was meant to be visually represented as Vinny struggled to read a massive Alabama Criminal Court procedure book; Launer imagined a close-up shot of scrambled letters gradually forming into readable words, only to jumble again as he moved to the next word.
However, the idea was scrapped because Lynn “was unsure how to effectively portray dyslexia,” Launer told Abnormal Use. The omission disappointed Launer, as it left Vinny’s intelligence ambiguous. “Without the dyslexia explanation, Vinny just seems slow. You don’t understand why he failed the bar so many times, only to suddenly appear competent. The audience has to assume he’s actually smart but found the law tedious and didn’t focus. ... There’s no clear explanation otherwise.” In the final cut, no reason is given for Vinny’s repeated bar exam failures.
12. A scene in My Cousin Vinny was inspired by a book on comedy and legal anecdotes.
The book highlighted real courtroom moments, and Launer adapted one for Vinny. During the voir dire scene, lawyers question a juror about capital punishment. The juror responds, “I think it should be up to the victims' families,” but after hearing the gruesome details of the crime, they exclaim, “Fry them.” Launer told Abnormal Use, “I took that directly from the book and used it in the film.”
13. My Cousin Vinny filmed scenes in a real prison.
The production spent several days shooting in a state prison in Gainesville, Georgia, specifically in the solitary confinement wing. “The prison has a death row section adjacent to where we filmed, and I explored it,” Lynn recalled in the DVD commentary. “The atmosphere was terrifying, and even with guards present, we all felt uneasy.”
It took nearly 40 minutes to travel from the prison entrance to the filming location inside. Whitfield shared with Abnormal Use, “When Ralph and I walked through the prison for the first time, carrying our blankets to our cell, we heard inmates shouting at us. Those were real prisoners, and their words were harsh. ... The filmmakers had to tone down what made it into the movie because the actual comments were too graphic. Ralph and I were genuinely scared.”
14. The prison guards featured in My Cousin Vinny were not actors.
The guards in the film were actual prison guards. Real inmates were also used as extras in two scenes: when Stan and Bill are escorted into the prison and during a brief basketball game in the exercise yard. “The prisoners were incredibly cooperative and followed directions perfectly,” Lynn mentioned in the DVD commentary. “I’m not sure what incentives or warnings were given to ensure their cooperation.”
15. The scene in My Cousin Vinny where Vinny and Stan have a comedic misunderstanding was initially removed from the script.
The scene was in the original script Lynn read but was cut from the shooting draft. However, the team later agreed to reinstate it, and it became one of the film’s most memorable and humorous moments. While the scenario would never realistically occur—lawyers and clients typically meet in interview rooms—the filmmakers debated the issue but ultimately prioritized humor over accuracy. Lynn noted, “We gambled that audiences wouldn’t notice the inconsistency, and thankfully, no one ever did.”
16. Joe Pesci mastered a card trick specifically for My Cousin Vinny.
In the scene where Vinny persuades Bill to let him handle his case, Vinny performs a card trick. “I insisted that the trick be genuine,” Lynn explained in the DVD commentary. “While it’s easy to fake such moments with clever editing, I discussed this with Joe beforehand, and he learned the trick. The scene was filmed in one continuous take, with no cuts, allowing him to genuinely fool the audience. He executed it flawlessly. I believed Vinny’s argument would lose impact if viewers thought the trick was faked through editing.”
17. Scenes involving Bill’s mother were ultimately removed from My Cousin Vinny.
During pre-production, a studio executive raised a concern: Why wasn’t Bill’s mother present to support him during his trial? “It was a valid point, because realistically, she should have been there,” Lynn noted in the DVD commentary. “But her presence would have been more of a distraction. The script was already lengthy, and we didn’t want to introduce a character who didn’t serve the plot.”
To address this, the filmmakers added scenes where Bill’s mother suffers a heart attack after Vinny arrives in Alabama. “We included moments of Bill trying to stay updated on her condition through messages, but we never showed her on screen,” Lynn said. “However, during editing, it became clear these scenes disrupted the film’s pacing. We decided to remove them and see if anyone noticed her absence. No one did, so we cut those scenes, saving five to 10 minutes of unnecessary footage.”
18. A real screech owl was used in one of My Cousin Vinny’s most iconic scenes.
One of the film’s recurring jokes involves Vinny being repeatedly woken up—by a steam whistle, noisy pigs, and finally, a screech owl. Lynn and his team used a real owl for the scene, which he admitted in the DVD commentary was “probably a risky move.” He added, “Many viewers assume it’s a Muppet because its actions were so spot-on. It screeched, glanced at Vinny, then turned to the camera and screeched again. We were incredibly fortunate with that owl.”
The owl’s screeches were added in post-production. To ensure the bird opened its beak at the right moment, the crew used a clever trick: “We found that if you place a small piece of meat in its beak, it partially swallows it and, about three seconds later, opens its beak as the meat goes down,” Lynn explained. “So, we fed it a bit of beef just before rolling the camera, ensuring its beak opened perfectly for the first screech, which was added later. Everything else it did in the scene was pure chance, and we were amazed by its flawless performance. We never attempted to reshoot it.” Lynn noted the owl was essentially wild, though it had been slightly trained: “It had been exposed to gunfire in the weeks prior to prevent it from being startled.”
19. Austin Pendleton had the entire crew laughing uncontrollably during the filming of My Cousin Vinny.
Director Jonathan Lynn cast his friend, Austin Pendleton—who stutters in real life—as the stammering public defender. “I knew he’d be hilarious in the role,” Lynn told Abnormal Use. “But I didn’t anticipate just how funny he’d be. I had to hide behind the camera because I was laughing so hard. I couldn’t let Austin see me, or it might throw him off. It was the funniest moment I’ve ever experienced on set.” Whitfield echoed this, telling Abnormal Use, “If you watch the scene where he’s stuttering at the table, and my shoulders are shaking like I’m crying, I was actually trying not to laugh. It was impossible to keep a straight face.”
20. The term yutes originated from a real conversation with Joe Pesci.
The exchange between Vinny and Judge Chamberlain Haller about “two yutes” became “one of the most iconic lines from the movie,” Lynn noted in the DVD commentary. The idea came from a real conversation between Lynn and Pesci while preparing for the film at the Mayflower Hotel in New York City. “He mentioned ‘these two yutes’ on trial, and I asked, ‘What?’ He repeated it, and I said, ‘What’s a yute?’” Lynn recalled. “I realized during our conversation that this interaction would work perfectly between Vinny and the judge, so I wrote it exactly as it happened.”
21. Joe Pesci’s Oscar nearly appeared in My Cousin Vinny.
The night before filming the scene where Vinny sleeps soundly during a prison riot after being held in contempt, Pesci had won the Oscar for Goodfellas. “He flew in from Los Angeles, and during the first take, we panned to him holding the Oscar in his arms,” Lynn said in the DVD commentary, laughing. “We sent that footage to the studio as part of the dailies.”
22. Many of the locations from My Cousin Vinny can still be visited.
Although the film is set in Alabama, it was primarily shot in three small Georgia towns. “Except for the courtroom, which was a set, almost everything was filmed on location,” director Jonathan Lynn explained in the DVD commentary. “It was a cost-effective approach and added authenticity.” This means fans can visit several of the film’s real-life locations, including the Sac-O-Suds convenience store.
23. My Cousin Vinny received acclaim from the legal community.
“The film is remarkably accurate in its portrayal of legal proceedings,” attorney Maxwell S. Kennerly wrote on his blog, Trial and Litigation. “Unlike movies such as A Few Good Men, every event in the film is plausible and often mirrors real-life trials.” Professor Alberto Bernabe of The John Marshall Law School, who categorizes legal films for his students, lists Vinny under “Education” because “it offers a wealth of material for classroom discussion. For instance, it can be used to explore criminal procedure, courtroom etiquette, professional ethics, judicial conduct, cross-examination techniques, expert witness roles, and effective trial advocacy.”
The movie has also been commended by a Seventh Circuit Court Judge, cited by Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia, and included in a legal textbook.
24. My Cousin Vinny secured a place on the American Bar Association’s list of Greatest Legal Movies.
Ranked third, “The film features cinema’s shortest opening argument ('Everything that guy just said is bulls**t'), an excellent primer on criminal procedure, and a case that relies on properly presented expert testimony about tire marks from a 1964 Skylark and the ideal cooking time for grits,” the journal states. Launer described the recognition as “like winning an Oscar. In some ways, even better.” Vincent Gambini ranked 12th on the association's list of Greatest Fictional Lawyers (Who Aren't Atticus Finch).
25. Marisa Tomei learned about her Oscar nomination for My Cousin Vinny in an unexpected setting.
Tomei was asleep on a friend’s couch—her friend was pregnant and close to her due date—when she discovered her Best Supporting Actress Oscar nomination. Her friends were watching TV, and “suddenly, there were shouts from the other room, waking me up,” she told David Letterman in 1993. “I wasn’t sure if she was going into labor or what was happening.” Tomei went on to win the Oscar, and despite the persistent myth that presenter Jack Palance read the wrong name, she genuinely won.
26. A sequel to My Cousin Vinny was once a possibility.
In 2004, Launer’s bio mentioned that “Joe was eager to do it, but Marisa wasn’t. Now she’s on board, and so is Joe, but the studio isn’t keen on a remake, believing too much time has passed since the original. Maybe everyone who loved it has moved on. Or changed their tastes. Launer hopes they’ll reconsider.” According to Whitfield, the sequel might have followed Vinny on an adventure in Europe.
27. Joe Pesci released an album as Vinny Gambini.
Before his acting career took off, Pesci was a lounge singer. Six years after My Cousin Vinny premiered, he released an album titled Vincent LaGuardia Gambini Sings Just for You. The album includes tracks like “Wise Guy,” “Take Your Love and Shove It,” “Yo Cousin Vinny,” and “I Can’t Give You Anything But Love,” a duet with Tomei as Mona Lisa. It debuted at No. 36 on the Billboard Heatseekers Chart.
28. A Bollywood adaptation of My Cousin Vinny exists.
Banda yeh bindaas hai (This Guy is Fearless), directed by Ravi Chopra, starred Govinda, Lara Dutta, and Sushmita Sen. In 2007, Chopra contacted Fox for permission to create a loosely based remake. However, in May 2009, Fox sued the production company, B.R. Films, for $1.4 million, claiming the film was an unapproved “substantial reproduction” of the original, with an identical plot, as reported by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. B.R. Films denied the allegations, stating their version had different characters and settings. The dispute was settled in August 2009, with B.R. Films paying Fox $200,000.
29. Patriots coach Bill Belichik referenced My Cousin Vinny during the Deflategate scandal.
Rudy Giuliani isn’t the only one who has casually referenced My Cousin Vinny in a press conference. “I wouldn’t call myself the Mona Lisa Vito of football,” Belichik remarked when questioned about football pressure. Upon hearing this, Tomei texted Pesci. “We found it hilarious,” she told The Rich Eisen Show.
