James Gandolfini breathed life into the role of Tony Soprano, but it may have cost the actor. In the new documentary Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos, which premiered Saturday, Sept. 7, former HBO executive Chris Albrecht recalled how he once staged an intervention with Gandolfini to convince the actor to enter rehab for his struggles with alcohol.
“We did an intervention with him in my apartment in New York,” Albrecht said. “That was to try to get him to go to a rehabilitation facility. Until then, we had a lot of friction. The trick was to invite Jimmy over so we could talk things over and sort of clear the air. And then he came up… We had a rehearsal the day before or whatever – his sister, everybody was there – and he saw everybody sitting there, and he said, ‘Oh, w… this.’ … He turned to me and said, ‘Let me go’ and left.”
Gandolfini ultimately helped run the series for six seasons from 1999 to 2007, earning three Emmys for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series for his portrayal of Tony.
James Gandolfini reprized Beloved The Sopranos Role — recruiting LeBron James — in 2010’s Unearthed Footage.
James Gandolfini on ‘The Sopranos’.
Anthony Neste/Getty
He died on June 19, 2013 at the age of 51 from a heart attack. Although series creator David Chase admitted at the time of the actor’s death that “it wasn’t easy for him at times,” Chase was quick to point out that the three-time Emmy winner was “one of the greatest actors of all time, or of any time.”
“Much of that genius was in those sad eyes,” Chase continued. “I remember telling him many times, ‘You don’t understand. You are like Mozart.’ There would be silence on the other end of the phone.” Chase cast a wide net when he first tried to cast Tony for The Soprano family. Chase discovered in Sage that he eventually discovered Gandolfini, who at first thought he had failed the audition, but gave it another try at Chase’s house, where he got the part.
“Bang,” Chase said, adding, “It was pretty obvious when Jim did it [it]. He he was Tony.”
James Gandolfini reprized Beloved The Sopranos Role — recruiting LeBron James — in 2010’s Unearthed Footage.
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James Gandolfini and Edie Falco in ‘The Sopranos’.
HBO/Getty
With his powerful role in the HBO drama, Gandolfini became a bona fide star. Ultimately, the actor is remembered by many of the cast and crew of the series as a gifted, benevolent artist.
Drea de Matteo recalled how Gandolfini gave many of the cast members more than $30,000 each when after a round of negotiations with HBO that increased the actor’s salary to $1 million per episode. “When Jim got the contract, none of us knew he was even on the table,” de Matteo said. gave a check for $30,000.”
Falco, for her part, said she never received a check from Gandolfini, but added that the good deed “sounds like him.”
“He was a very good-natured, kind man who looked out for his friends,” Falco added.
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Wise Guy: David Chase and the Sopranos is available for streaming on Max. Seasons 1 to 6 The Soprano family they are also available on the streaming platform.
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Source: HIS Education