It’s hard to believe that over 10 years have gone by since we last watched a ‘new’ episode of The Sopranos. As it turns out, the show wasn’t over, it was just waiting for something awesome to happen. The show followed the life of Tony Soprano, a New Jersey mobster who struggled to keep all of his ducks in a row. When you really stop to think about it, he was the frontrunner for other shows with anti-heroes, including Game of Thrones and Breaking Bad.
James Gandolfini brought his character, Tony Soprano to the screen and will forever be remembered for it. Unfortunately, he suffered a heart attack in 2013 and died at the age of 51. At that point, it seemed as if the show was never to be revived but now, there is a prequel in the making. They have even chosen the perfect man to play Tony in his younger years, Michael Gandolfini, the 19-year-old son of James.
It works well because he looks like his dad but that isn’t the only reason he was cast. He also seems to have his father’s mannerisms and that won him the part, which many people auditioned for. He also had a breakout role playing Joey Dwyer on ‘The Deuce’, an HBO drama series.
The name of the prequel is ‘The Many Saints of Newark’ and is set back when Italian gangsters were at war with African-Americans. It will focus on a mentor of Tony, Dickie Moltisanti (played by Alessandro Nivola).
Even though Dickie was never seen on The Sopranos, he was mentioned often by Tony. It is already known that Dickie was the cousin of Carmella Soprano and was shot dead when Christopher, his son, was a baby.
The Many Saints of Newark will be directed by Alan Taylor, who also directed 9 episodes of The Sopranos. A number of big names will be included, such as Vera Farmiga, Jon Bernthal, Billy Magnussen, and Corey Stoll.
In a statement to Deadline, Michael Gandolfini said, “It’s a profound honor to continue my dad’s legacy while stepping into the shoes of a young Tony Soprano. I’m thrilled that I’m going to have the opportunity to work with David Chase and the incredible company of talent he has assembled for The Many Saints of Newark.”
Will the prequel live up to the hype? We’ll just have to wait and see.