Daniel Stern, Joe Pesci.Photo:Lilly Lawrence/FilmMagic;Jamie McCarthy/Getty

Alec Baldwin, Joe Pesci, Martin Scorsese, Spike Lee and Hilaria Baldwin attend the 2019 New York Film Critics Circle Awards at TAO Downtown on January 07, 2020 in New York City. Actor Daniel Stern arrives at the 2014 Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour - WGN America Presents “Manhattan” at The Beverly Hilton Hotel on July 9, 2014 in Beverly Hills, California

Lilly Lawrence/FilmMagic;Jamie McCarthy/Getty

Daniel SternandJoe Pesciremain close friends.In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Stern, 67, says that he and hisHome Alonecostar still find time for one another, over two decades after the popular holiday film was released.“I see him once a year,” Stern says of Pesci, 81, who played criminal Harry in the 1990 film — and its sequel,Home Alone 2: Lost in New York(1992) — opposite his character Marv.“I love seeing Joe. [He’s a] dear friend,” continues the star.Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Daniel Stern and Joe Pesci as their ‘Home Alone’ characters.Snap/ShutterstockAccording to Stern, he and Pesci first met years beforeHome Alone, during the filming of a 1982 drama film.“We did a really bad movie together calledI’m Dancing as Fast as I Can, where we played mental institution [patients],” he says.The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!And though he and Pesci “got cut out of the movie” — which he describes as a “blessing” — Stern says he has supported theGoodfellasstar ever since, including when it comes to his passion project: music.“One thing I love to tell people about Mr. Pesci is if you really want to know who he is,listen to his music. He is the most brilliant jazz singer,” Stern tells PEOPLE. “He’s got this beautiful tenor voice. I mean, he makes me weep when he sings these kinds ofSinatra songs.“Daniel Stern, Joe Pesci.Jim Spellman/WireImage; Valerie Macon/AFP/GettySterncurrently lives on a California ranch— which he purchased with the money he saved from his time in Hollywood.There, he grows tangerines and creates passion project art that he describes as an “extension of the human condition.“Stern says hislifestyle choicereflects that of his former costar, who has also chosen a life out of the limelight.“I mean, he’s a reclusive soul himself,” Stern says of Pesci, adding, “He lives back in Jersey half the time.”

Daniel SternandJoe Pesciremain close friends.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Stern, 67, says that he and hisHome Alonecostar still find time for one another, over two decades after the popular holiday film was released.

“I see him once a year,” Stern says of Pesci, 81, who played criminal Harry in the 1990 film — and its sequel,Home Alone 2: Lost in New York(1992) — opposite his character Marv.

“I love seeing Joe. [He’s a] dear friend,” continues the star.

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Daniel Stern and Joe Pesci as their ‘Home Alone’ characters.Snap/Shutterstock

‘HOME ALONE 2: LOST IN NEW YORK’ WITH 1992, CHRIS COLUMBUS, JOE PESCI, DANIEL STERN IN 1992

Snap/Shutterstock

According to Stern, he and Pesci first met years beforeHome Alone, during the filming of a 1982 drama film.

“We did a really bad movie together calledI’m Dancing as Fast as I Can, where we played mental institution [patients],” he says.

The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now!

And though he and Pesci “got cut out of the movie” — which he describes as a “blessing” — Stern says he has supported theGoodfellasstar ever since, including when it comes to his passion project: music.

“One thing I love to tell people about Mr. Pesci is if you really want to know who he is,listen to his music. He is the most brilliant jazz singer,” Stern tells PEOPLE. “He’s got this beautiful tenor voice. I mean, he makes me weep when he sings these kinds ofSinatra songs.”

Daniel Stern, Joe Pesci.Jim Spellman/WireImage; Valerie Macon/AFP/Getty

US actor Joe Pesci arrives for the Los Angeles premiere of Netflix’s “The Irishman” at the Chinese theatre in Hollywood on October 24, 2019.US actor Joe Pesci arrives for the Los Angeles premiere of Netflix’s “The Irishman” at the Chinese theatre in Hollywood on October 24, 2019.

Jim Spellman/WireImage; Valerie Macon/AFP/Getty

Sterncurrently lives on a California ranch— which he purchased with the money he saved from his time in Hollywood.

There, he grows tangerines and creates passion project art that he describes as an “extension of the human condition.”

Stern says hislifestyle choicereflects that of his former costar, who has also chosen a life out of the limelight.

“I mean, he’s a reclusive soul himself,” Stern says of Pesci, adding, “He lives back in Jersey half the time.”

source: people.com