The gang was all there at the New York Film Festival’s press screening for Martin Scorsese’s late-phase masterpiece The Irishman back in September: Marty himself, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro and in one of an increasingly scarce number of public appearances, Joe Pesci.

Resplendent in Marcello Mastroianni shades he refused to take off for the duration of the post-screening onstage Q&A, Pesci sat largely in silence as moderator Kent Jones talked through the thorny meditation on mortal sin and Teamster politicking. Jones lobbed one question Pesci’s way, a general inquiry about whether he could speak on the motivations compelling him to return to acting after his self-proclaimed retirement in 1999.