Nearing the end of the film, Nicky and his brother Dominick (Philip Suriano), based on Tony's brother Michael Spilotro, are shown being beaten with metal baseball bats and buried alive in an Indiana cornfield by their associate Frank Marino (Frank Vincent), based on Frank Cullotta, and the rest of Nicky's crew.

In the movie "Casino," the character Nicky Santoro, played by Joe Pesci, is indeed killed by the mob for his increasingly erratic and violent behavior, which includes the bombing of Ace Rothstein's car. This act ultimately leads to his demise as the mob sees him as a liability.