The Sopranos

David Chase in 2015

David Chase had worked as a television producer for more than 20 years before creating The Sopranos.[21][22] He had been employed as a staff writer or producer for several television series, including Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Switch, The Rockford Files, I'll Fly Away, and Northern Exposure.[23] He had also co-created the short-lived original series Almost Grown in 1988.[24][25] He made his television directorial debut in 1986 with the "Enough Rope for Two" episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. He also directed episodes of Almost Grown and I'll Fly Away in 1988 and 1992, respectively. In 1996, he wrote and directed the television film The Rockford Files: Punishment and Crime. He served as showrunner for I'll Fly Away and Northern Exposure in the 1990s. Chase won his first Emmy Award in 1978 for his work on The Rockford Files (shared with fellow producers) and his second for writing the 1980 television film Off the Minnesota Strip.[26][27] By 1996, he was a coveted showrunner.[28]

The story of The Sopranos was initially conceived as a feature film about "a mobster in therapy having problems with his mother".[24] Chase got some input from his manager Lloyd Braun and decided to adapt it into a television series.[24] He signed a development deal in 1995 with production company Brillstein-Grey and wrote the original pilot script.[22][26][30] He drew heavily from his personal life and his experiences growing up in New Jersey, and has stated that he tried to apply his own "family dynamic to mobsters".[29] For instance, the tumultuous relationship between series protagonist Tony Soprano and his mother Livia is partially based on Chase's relationship with his own mother.[29] He was also in psychotherapy at the time and modeled the character of Jennifer Melfi after his own psychiatrist.[31]

Chase had been fascinated by organized crime and the mafia from an early age, witnessing such people growing up. He also was raised on classic gangster films such as The Public Enemy and the crime series The Untouchables. The series is partly inspired by the Richard Boiardo family, a prominent New Jersey organized crime family when Chase was growing up, and partly on New Jersey's DeCavalcante family.[32] He has mentioned American playwrights Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams as influences on the show's writing, and Italian director Federico Fellini as an important influence on the show's cinematic style.[28][33][34] The series was named after high school friends of his.[21][31]

Chase and producer Brad Grey pitched The Sopranos to several networks; Fox showed interest but passed on it after Chase presented them the pilot script.[30] They eventually pitched the show to Chris Albrecht, president of HBO Original Programming, who decided to finance a pilot episode[22][26] which was shot in 1997.[36][37] Chase directed it himself. They finished the pilot and showed it to HBO executives, but the show was put on hold for several months. During this time, Chase, who had experienced frustration for a long period with being unable to break out of the TV genre and into film,[22] considered asking HBO for additional funding to shoot 45 more minutes of footage and release The Sopranos as a feature film. In December 1997, HBO decided to produce the series and ordered 12 more episodes for a 13-episode season.[22][26][38] The show premiered on HBO on January 10, 1999, with the pilot, The Sopranos.

North Jersey prosecutor and municipal judge Robert Baer filed a breach of contract lawsuit against Chase in Trenton, New Jersey federal court, alleging that he helped to create the show. Baer lost the suit, but he won a ruling that a jury should decide how much he should be paid for services as a location scout, researcher, and story consultant. Baer argued that he had introduced Chase to Tony Spirito, a restaurateur and gambler with alleged mob ties, and Thomas Koczur, a homicide detective for the Elizabeth, New Jersey Police Department. Chase had conducted interviews and tours with both, which strongly inspired some characters, settings, and storylines portrayed in The Sopranos.[39][40][41] On December 19, 2007, a federal jury ruled against Baer, dismissing all of his claims.[42]

James Gandolfini (right) and Tony Sirico (left) visit the U.S. Air Force during a USO visit to Southwest Asia

Many of the actors on The Sopranos are Italian Americans, like the characters they portray, and many appeared together in films and television series before joining the cast of The Sopranos. The series has 27 actors in common with the 1990 Martin Scorsese gangster film Goodfellas, including main cast members Lorraine Bracco, Michael Imperioli, and Tony Sirico.[43]

The casting directors were Georgianne Walken and Sheila Jaffe.[44][45] The main cast was put together through a process of auditions and readings. Actors often did not know whether Chase liked their performances or not.[22] Michael Imperioli beat out several actors for the part of Christopher Moltisanti; he said that Chase has "a poker face, so I thought he wasn't into me, and he kept giving me notes and having me try it again, which often is a sign that you're not doing it right." Chase said that he wanted Imperioli because he had been in Goodfellas.[22] James Gandolfini was invited to audition for the part of Tony Soprano after casting director Susan Fitzgerald saw a short clip of his performance in the 1993 film True Romance.[22] Lorraine Bracco played the role of mob wife Karen Hill in Goodfellas, and she was originally asked to play the role of Carmela Soprano. She took the role of Dr. Jennifer Melfi instead because she wanted to try something different and felt that the part of the highly educated Dr. Melfi would be more of a challenge for her.[46] Tony Sirico has a criminal history,[47] and he signed on to play Paulie Walnuts so long as his character was not to be a "rat".[48] Sirico had originally auditioned for the role of Uncle Junior with Frank Vincent, but Dominic Chianese landed the role.[49] Chase was impressed with Steven Van Zandt's humorous appearance and presence after seeing him induct The Rascals into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1997, and invited him to audition.[50] Van Zandt, a guitarist in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, had never acted before. He auditioned for the role of Tony Soprano, but HBO felt that the role should go to an experienced actor, so Chase wrote a new part for him.[46][50] Van Zandt eventually agreed to star on the show as consigliere Silvio Dante, and his real-life spouse Maureen was cast as his on-screen wife Gabriella.[51][52][53]

The cast of the debut season of the series consisted of largely unknown actors, with the exception of Bracco, Chianese and Nancy Marchand, but many cast members were noted for their acting ability and received mainstream attention for their performances.[22][54] Subsequent seasons saw established actors Joe Pantoliano, Robert Loggia, Steve Buscemi, and Frank Vincent[55] join the starring cast, along with well-known actors in recurring roles such as Peter Bogdanovich, John Heard,[56] Robert Patrick,[57] Peter Riegert,[58] Annabella Sciorra,[55] and David Strathairn.[59] Several well-known actors appeared in one or two episodes, such as Lauren Bacall, Daniel Baldwin, Annette Bening, Polly Bergen, Sandra Bernhard, Charles S. Dutton,[60] Jon Favreau, Janeane Garofalo, Hal Holbrook, Tim Kang, Elias Koteas, Ben Kingsley, Linda Lavin, Ken Leung,[61] Julianna Margulies, Sydney Pollack, Wilmer Valderrama, Alicia Witt, and Burt Young.[62]

Series creator and executive producer David Chase served as showrunner and head writer for the production of all six seasons of the show. He was deeply involved with the general production of every episode and is noted for being a very controlling, demanding, and specific producer.[21][27] He wrote or co-wrote between two and seven episodes per season and would oversee all the editing, consult with episode directors, give actors character motivation, approve casting choices and set designs, and do extensive but uncredited rewrites of episodes written by others.[54][63][64] Brad Grey served as executive producer alongside Chase but had no creative input on the show.[65] Many members of the creative team behind The Sopranos were handpicked by Chase, some being old friends and colleagues of his; others were selected after interviews conducted by producers of the show.[22][55]

Many of the show's writers worked in television before joining the writing staff of The Sopranos. Writing team and married couple Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess worked on the series as writers and producers from the first to the fifth season; they had previously worked with Chase on Northern Exposure.[66] Terence Winter joined the writing staff during the production of the second season and served as executive producer from season five onwards. He practiced law for two years before deciding to pursue a career as a screenwriter, and he caught the attention of Chase through writer Frank Renzulli.[28][67] Matthew Weiner served as staff writer and producer for the show's fifth and sixth seasons. He wrote a script for the series Mad Men in 2000 which was passed on to Chase, who was so impressed that he immediately offered Weiner a job as a writer for The Sopranos.[68] Cast members Michael Imperioli and Toni Kalem portray Christopher Moltisanti and Angie Bonpensiero respectively, and they also wrote episodes for the show. Imperioli wrote five episodes of seasons two through five, and Kalem wrote one episode of season five.[69][70]

Other writers included Frank Renzulli, Todd A. Kessler (co-creator of Damages), writing team Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider who worked with Chase on Northern Exposure, and Lawrence Konner, who co-created Almost Grown with Chase in 1988. In total, 20 writers or writing teams are credited with writing episodes of The Sopranos. Of these, Tim Van Patten and Maria Laurino receive a single story credit, and eight others are credited with writing a sole episode. The most prolific writers of the series were Chase (30 credited episodes, including story credits), Winter (25 episodes), Green and Burgess (22 episodes), Weiner (12 episodes), and Renzulli (9 episodes).

Many of the directors had previously worked on television series and independent films.[55] The most frequent directors of the series were Tim Van Patten (20 episodes), John Patterson (13 episodes), Allen Coulter (12 episodes), and Alan Taylor (9 episodes), all of whom have a background in television.[55] Recurring cast members Steve Buscemi and Peter Bogdanovich also directed episodes of the series intermittently.[71][72] Chase directed the pilot episode and the series finale.[73] Both episodes were photographed by the show's original director of photography Alik Sakharov, who later alternated episodes with Phil Abraham.[74] The show's photography and directing is noted for its feature film quality.[75][76] This look was achieved by Chase collaborating with Sakharov. "From the pilot, we would sit down with the whole script and break the scenes down into shots. That's what you do with feature films."[74]

The Sopranos is noted for its eclectic music selections and has received considerable critical attention for its effective use of previously recorded songs.[77][78][79][80] Chase personally selected all of the show's music with producer Martin Bruestle and music editor Kathryn Dayak, sometimes also consulting Steven Van Zandt.[77] The music was usually selected once the production and editing of an episode was completed, but on occasion sequences were filmed to match preselected pieces of music.[63]

The show's opening theme is "Woke Up This Morning" (Chosen One Mix), written by, remixed and performed by British band Alabama 3.[81] With few exceptions, a different song plays over the closing credits of each episode.[79] Many songs are repeated multiple times through an episode, such as "Living on a Thin Line" by The Kinks in the season three episode "University" and "Glad Tidings" by Van Morrison in the season five finale "All Due Respect".[79] Other songs are heard several times throughout the series. A notable example is "Con te partirò", performed by Italian singer Andrea Bocelli,[82] which plays several times in relation to the character of Carmela Soprano. While the show utilizes a wealth of previously recorded music, it is also notable for its lack of originally composed incidental music, compared with other television programs.[83]

Two soundtrack albums containing music from the series have been released. The first, titled The Sopranos: Music from the HBO Original Series, was released in 1999. It contains selections from the show's first two seasons and reached #54 on the U.S. Billboard 200.[84][85] A second soundtrack compilation, titled The Sopranos - Peppers and Eggs: Music From The HBO Series, was released in 2001. This double-disc album contains songs and selected dialogue from the show's first three seasons.[86] It reached #38 on the U.S. Billboard 200.[87]

The Soprano house in North Caldwell, New Jersey (2006)

Satriale's Pork Store (2007)

The majority of the exterior scenes taking place in New Jersey were filmed on location, with the majority of the interior shots filmed at Silvercup Studios in New York City, including most indoor shots of the Soprano residence, the back room of the strip club Bada Bing!, and Dr. Melfi's office.[54] The pork store was called Centanni's Meat Market in the pilot episode, an actual butchery in Elizabeth, New Jersey.[88] After the series was picked up by HBO, the producers leased a building with a store front in Kearny, New Jersey[88] which served as the shooting location for exterior and interior scenes for the remainder of production; renamed Satriale's Pork Store.[88] After the series ended, the building was demolished.[89]

The strip club Bada Bing! was owned and operated by Silvio Dante on the show, but it is an actual strip club on Route 17 in Lodi, New Jersey.[88] Exteriors and interiors were shot on location except for the back room.[88] The club is called Satin Dolls and was an existing business before the show started.[90] The club continued to operate during the eight years that the show was filmed there, and a business arrangement was worked out with the owner.[90] Locations manager Mark Kamine recalls that the owner was "very gracious" as long as the shooting did not "conflict with his business time".[90] Scenes set at the restaurant Vesuvio, owned and operated in the series by character Artie Bucco, were filmed at a restaurant called Manolo's located in Elizabeth for the first episode. After the destruction of Vesuvio within the context of the series, Artie opened a new restaurant called Nuovo Vesuvio; exterior scenes set there were filmed at an Italian restaurant called Punta Dura located in Long Island City.[88] All the exterior and some interior shots of the Soprano residence were filmed on location at a private residence in North Caldwell, New Jersey.[88]

Tony Soprano is seen emerging from the Lincoln Tunnel and passes through the tollbooth for the New Jersey Turnpike. Numerous landmarks in and around Newark and Jersey City, New Jersey, are then shown passing by the camera as Tony drives down the highway.[91] The sequence ends with Tony pulling into the driveway of his suburban home. Chase has said that the goal of the title sequence was to show that this particular mafia show was about New Jersey, as opposed to New York, where most similar dramas have been set.[92]

In the first three seasons, between Tony leaving the tunnel and passing through the toll plaza, the show had a shot of the World Trade Center towers in Tony's right side-view mirror. After the September 11 attacks, this shot was removed and replaced with a more generic shot, beginning with the show's fourth season.[93]

In a 2010 issue of TV Guide, the show's opening title sequence ranked #10 on a list of TV's top 10 credits sequences, as selected by readers.[94]

When Tony Soprano collapses after suffering a panic attack, he begins therapy with Dr. Jennifer Melfi. Details of Tony's upbringing - with his father's influence looming large on his development as a gangster, but more so that Tony's mother, Livia, was vengeful and possibly psychopathic - are revealed. His complicated relationship with his wife Carmela is also explored, as well as her feelings regarding her husband's cosa nostra ties. Meadow and Anthony Jr., Tony's children, gain increasing knowledge of their father's mob dealings. Later, federal indictments are brought as a result of someone in his organization talking to the FBI.

Tony's uncle Corrado "Junior" Soprano orders the murder of Brendan Filone and the mock execution of Chris Moltisanti, associates of Tony, as a reprisal for repeated hijackings of trucks under Corrado's protection. Tony defuses the situation by allowing his uncle to be installed as boss of the family (following the death of previous boss Jackie Aprile Sr. from cancer), while Tony retains actual control of most things from behind the scenes. Corrado discovers the artifice, however, and orders an attempt on Tony's life. The assassination is botched and Tony responds violently, before confronting his mother for her role in plotting his downfall; she appears to have a psychologically-triggered stroke. "Junior" is arrested by the FBI on unrelated charges.

Jackie's brother Richie Aprile is released from prison, proving to be uncontrollable in the business arena. He starts a relationship with Janice, Tony's sister, who has arrived from Seattle. "Big Pussy" returns to New Jersey after a conspicuous absence.

Christopher Moltisanti becomes engaged to his girlfriend Adriana La Cerva. Matthew Bevilaqua and Sean Gismonte, two low-level associates dissatisfied with their perceived lack of success in the Soprano crew, try to make a name for themselves by attempting to kill Christopher. Their plan fails and Christopher kills Sean, but is critically wounded. Tony and Big Pussy locate Matthew and kill him. A witness goes to the FBI and identifies Tony.

Junior is placed under house arrest as he awaits trial. Richie, frustrated with Tony's authority over him, entreats Junior to have Tony killed. Junior feigns interest, then informs Tony of Richie's intentions, leaving Tony with another problem to address. However, the situation is defused unexpectedly when Janice kills Richie in a violent argument; Tony and his men conceal all evidence of the murder, and Janice returns to Seattle.

Tony, realizing Big Pussy is an FBI informant, kills him on board a boat (with assistance from Silvio Dante and Paulie Gualtieri), disposing of his body at sea.

Following the "disappearance" of Richie Aprile, the return of the ambitious Ralph Cifaretto, having spent an extended period of leisure time in Miami, marks the third season. He renews a relationship with Rosalie Aprile, the widow of Jackie Aprile Sr. With Richie assumed to have joined the Witness Protection Program, Ralph unofficially usurps control over the Aprile crew, proving to be an exceptionally dexterous earner for the crew. While Ralph's competitive merit would seemingly have him next in line to ascend to capo, his insubordination inclines Tony not to promote him and he instead gives the promotion to the unqualified but complacent Gigi Cestone, causing much resentment and tension between him and Ralph. Livia dies of a stroke.

Rosalie's son Jackie Aprile Jr. becomes involved with Meadow and then descends into a downward spiral of recklessness, drugs and crime. Tony initially attempts to act as a mentor to Jackie but becomes increasingly impatient with his escalating misbehavior, particularly as Jackie's relationship with Meadow begins to become serious. Inspired by a story from Ralph about how Tony, Jackie Sr., and Silvio Dante got made, Jackie and his friends Dino Zerilli and Carlo Renzi make a similar move and attempt to rob Eugene Pontecorvo's Saturday night card game so they can gain recognition from the family. The plan takes a turn for the worse when Jackie panics and kills the card dealer, provoking a shoot-out. Dino and Carlo are killed, but Jackie manages to escape. Tony decides to give Ralph the decision regarding Jackie Jr.'s punishment. Despite his role as a surrogate father, Ralph decides to have Jackie Jr. killed.

Ralph ultimately crosses the line when, in a cocaine-induced rage, he gets into a confrontation with his (possibly pregnant) girlfriend Tracee and beats her to death. This infuriates Tony to the point where he violates traditional mafia code by striking him repeatedly in front of the entire family. Bad blood temporarily surfaces between the two but is shortly resolved after Cestone suffers a fatal heart attack, thereby forcing Tony to reluctantly promote Ralph to capo.

Tony begins an affair with Gloria Trillo, who is also a patient of Dr. Melfi. Their relationship is brief and tumultuous. Meanwhile, Dr. Melfi is raped by a stranger in a parking complex. Junior is diagnosed with stomach cancer; following chemotherapy, it goes into remission. A.J. continues to get in trouble at school — despite success on the football team — which culminates in his expulsion.

New York underboss Johnny Sack becomes enraged after learning Ralph Cifaretto made an inappropriate joke about his wife's weight. He seeks permission from boss Carmine Lupertazzi to have Ralph clipped, but is denied. Johnny orders the hit anyway. Tony receives the okay from Carmine to hit Johnny Sack for insubordination. Junior Soprano tips Tony to use an old outfit in Providence for the work. After catching his wife eating sweets secretly, instead of following the diet plan, Johnny Sack calls off the hit on Ralph, and bloodshed is averted.

Tony and Ralph invest in a racehorse named Pie-O-My, who wins several races and makes them both a great deal of money. However, when Ralph's 12-year-old son Justin is severely injured in an archery accident, Tony comes to believe Ralph burned Pie-O-My in a stable fire to collect $200,000 in insurance money. Tony confronts Ralph and Ralph denies setting the fire. The two engage in a violent brawl, culminating in Tony strangling Ralph to death. Tony and Christopher dispose of the body.

While he is leaving court, Junior is hit in the head with a boom mic and falls down several steps. Tony advises him to take advantage of the opportunity, act mentally incompetent, and employ it as a ruse for not continuing the trial. Later, Eugene Pontecorvo intimidates a juror, resulting in a deadlocked jury, forcing the judge to declare a mistrial.

Following the death of Bobby Baccalieri's wife, Janice pursues a romantic relationship with him. Christopher's addiction to heroin deepens, prompting his associates and family to organize an intervention, after which he enters a drug rehabilitation center. Adriana's friend Danielle Ciccolella is revealed to be undercover FBI agent Deborah Ciccerone-Waldrup, who tells Adriana the only way for her to stay out of prison is to become an informant. Adriana agrees and starts sharing information with the FBI.

Carmela, whose relationship with Tony is tense due to financial worries and Tony's infidelities, develops a mutual infatuation with Furio Giunta. Furio, incapable of breaking his moral codes and that of the Neapolitan mafia, clandestinely returns home to Italy. After Tony's former mistress calls their home, Carmela throws Tony out. Tony is approached by Johnny Sack with a proposal to murder Carmine, which Tony turns down.

A string of new characters are introduced, including Tony's cousin Tony Blundetto, who simultaneously along with other mafiosi, is released from prison. Among the others released are former DiMeo crime family capo Michele "Feech" La Manna, Lupertazzi family capo Phil Leotardo, and semi-retired Lupertazzi consigliere Angelo Garepe. Tony offers Tony B a job, but he respectfully declines, as he is determined to lead a straight life. He initially begins to take courses to earn a degree in massage therapy and aspires to open up a massage parlor. After Carmine Lupertazzi dies of a stroke, his death leaves a vacancy for the boss of the Lupertazzi family, which will soon be fought over by underboss Johnny Sack and Carmine's son Carmine Lupertazzi Jr. After Feech proves to be an insubordinate presence, Tony arranges for him to be sent back to prison by setting him up with stolen property, violating his parole.

The war between Johnny Sack and Carmine Jr. begins when Johnny has Phil kill "lady shylock" Lorraine Calluzzo. Tony B's attempt to stay straight comes to a head when he gets into a brawl with his employer. Angelo, who was a good friend to Tony B in prison, and Lupertazzi capo Rusty Millio offer Tony B the job of taking out Joey Peeps in retaliation for Lorraine's death. Tony B initially declines but, desperate to earn, accepts the job. He catches Joey outside a bordello, shoots him, and quickly flees the scene. Johnny believes Tony B is involved and retaliates by having Phil and his brother Billy Leotardo kill Angelo. Tony B finds the Leotardo brothers and opens fire, killing Billy and wounding Phil.

Separated from Carmela, Tony is living at his parents' house. Carmela, the sole authority figure in the home, becomes frustrated as her rules lead A.J. to resent her so she allows him to live with his father. She has a brief relationship with Robert Wegler, A.J.'s guidance counselor; he breaks it off abruptly when he suspects that she is manipulating him to improve A.J.'s grades. Tony and Carmela reconcile; Tony promises to be more loyal and agrees to pay for a piece of real estate Carmela wishes to develop.

Tony gets Meadow's boyfriend Finn De Trolio a summer job at a construction site, which is run by Aprile crew capo Vito Spatafore. Finn comes in early one morning and catches Vito performing fellatio on a security guard. Vito tries to buddy up to Finn so that he keeps quiet, but Finn soon quits the job out of fear.

After covering up a murder that occurred at The Crazy Horse, Adriana is arrested and pressured by the FBI to wear a wire to avoid being charged as an accomplice. She refuses to wear a wire and informs the FBI that she may be able to persuade Christopher to co-operate and become an informant against Tony. She confesses to Christopher that she has been informing and that the FBI would give them new identities if they would testify. Christopher is grief-stricken and nearly kills her. He leaves the apartment, saying he needs time to think. Tony has Silvio pick up Adriana under the pretense of taking her to see Christopher, but he instead drives her out to the woods and executes her. Adriana's betrayal and subsequent execution are too much for Christopher to handle and he briefly returns to drug abuse to deal with the pain.

Phil Leotardo and his henchmen beat Benny Fazio while trying to acquire the whereabouts of Tony B; Phil also threatens to have Christopher taken out if Tony B's whereabouts are not disclosed soon. To avoid anymore of his guys getting hurt and to pacify New York, Tony tracks Tony B to their Uncle Pat's farm and shoots him. Phil is furious that he did not get the opportunity to do it himself. Tony and Johnny meet at Johnny's house in a reconciliatory manner, but Johnny is arrested by Federal agents, while Tony escapes.

A senile and confused Uncle Junior shoots Tony. Rendered comatose, Tony dreams he is a salesman on a business trip who mistakenly exchanges his briefcase and identification with a man named Kevin Finnerty. Tony's recovery from the shooting changes his outlook and he tries to mend his ways. However, he is faced with more problems in his business life.

Once out of the hospital, Johnny Sack's daughter gets married and the Soprano family attends. Johnny Sack is approved to leave prison for six hours to see his daughter get married but has to pay for the metal detectors and the presence of the U.S. marshals at the event. As his daughter is about to drive away, the SUV that was escorting Johnny to the wedding blocks the car from leaving and an altercation begins in the driveway. In a moment of weakness and despair, Johnny Sack cries as he is put back into handcuffs and driven back to prison, greatly diminishing the respect his crew and Tony's crew have for him.

Vito Spatafore is outed as gay after running into a friend making collections at a New York gay night club. The rumor spreads quickly, and once word gets to Meadow that everyone else knows, she tells Tony and Carmela about the incident between Finn and Vito with the security guard. Finn is forced to tell Tony's entire crew what happened with the guard, solidifying their thoughts on Vito's sexuality. Tony is urged to deal with the problem by the intensely homophobic Phil Leotardo, now the acting boss of New York. Once Vito is outed, he flees to a New Hampshire town, where he poses as an author and starts a romantic relationship with a male cook at a local diner. Eventually, Vito returns to New Jersey and asks Tony to allow him to return to work, albeit in Atlantic City. He continues to maintain that he is not a homosexual. Tony mulls over the decision to let him work, as well as whether to let him live. When Tony fails to act, Phil intervenes and kills Spatafore. When one of the members of the New York family, Fat Dom Gamiello, pays a visit to the Jersey office and won't stop making jokes about Vito and his death, Silvio and Carlo kill Fat Dom out of anger at his disrespect. Once more, it appears that the families are on the verge of all-out war.

During the first half of the season Chris and Carmine head to Los Angeles in an ultimately unsuccessful attempt to try to sign Ben Kingsley for a film they are trying to make called Cleaver, which is a mix of The Godfather and Saw. While in Los Angeles, Chris goes back to using cocaine for a short period.

Tony considers killing several of his associates for relatively minor infractions. Christopher is unable to leave the mob, deflecting his problems by relapsing into drug addiction and kills his friend from Narcotics Anonymous, J. T. Dolan. He is then seriously injured in a car accident while driving under the influence of narcotics. Tony, the sole passenger, finally loses patience with Christopher's failings and suffocates him. A.J. is dumped by his fiancée and slips into depression, culminating in a suicide attempt in the backyard pool. Dr. Melfi is convinced by colleagues that Tony is making no progress and may even be using talk therapy for his sociopathic benefit. She drops him as a patient.

Johnny Sack dies from lung cancer while imprisoned, and Leotardo consolidates his position in the Lupertazzi family by having his rivals for the leadership killed. Phil then officially takes over, igniting a resumption of the past feud with Tony and refusing to compromise with Tony on a garbage deal. When Tony assaults a Lupertazzi soldier for harassing Meadow while she is on a date, Phil decides it's time to decapitate the Soprano crew. He orders the executions of Bobby Baccalieri, who is shot to death; Silvio, who ends up comatose; and Tony, who goes into hiding. A deal is brokered whereby the rest of the Lupertazzi family agrees to ignore the order to kill Tony, allowing Tony to go after Phil. FBI agent Dwight Harris informs Tony of Phil's location, allowing Tony to have him killed. Tony suspects that Carlo Gervasi, a capo from New Jersey, has become an informant in an attempt to help out his son, who has recently been caught for dealing ecstasy. Tony meets his lawyer, who informs him that subpoenas are being given to New Jersey and New York crews alike.

Tony plans to have dinner at a diner with his family. As Meadow arrives at the door, the screen goes to Tony. The diner door opens with a bell ringing, Tony looks up and the show smash cuts to black and after a few seconds, the credits roll in silence.

Chase's decision to end the last episode abruptly with just a black screen was controversial. While Chase has insisted that it was not his intention to stir controversy, the ambiguity over the ending and question of whether Tony was murdered has continued for years after the finale's original broadcast and has spawned numerous websites devoted to finding out his true intention.[124][125][126]

The Sopranos was a major ratings success, despite being aired on premium cable network HBO, which is available in significantly fewer American homes than regular networks. The show frequently attracted equal or larger audiences than most popular network shows of the time.[127] Nielsen ratings for the first four seasons are not entirely accurate, however, as Nielsen reported aggregate numbers for cable networks prior to January 2004, meaning that people who were included in the ratings estimates were actually watching HBO channels other than the main one on which The Sopranos aired.[128]

The Sopranos has been hailed by many critics as the greatest and most groundbreaking television series of all time.[3][4][5][37][147][148][149][150][151] The writing, acting, and directing have often been singled out for praise. The show has also received considerable attention from critics and journalists for its technical merit, music selections, cinematography, and willingness to deal with difficult and controversial subjects including crime, family, gender roles, mental illness, and American and Italian-American culture.[76][149][150] The Sopranos is credited for creating a new era in the mafia genre deviating from the traditional dramatized image of the gangster in favor of a simpler, more accurate reflection of ordinary day-to-day mob life in a suburb.[152] The series sheds light on Italian family dynamics through the depiction of Tony's tumultuous relationship with his mother.[153] Edie Falco's character Carmela Soprano is praised in Kristyn Gorton's essay "Why I Love Carmela Soprano" for challenging Italian-American gender roles.[154] New Yorker editor David Remnick described The Sopranos as mirroring the "mindless commerce and consumption" of modern America.[155] The series has an overall rating of 92 percent on Rotten Tomatoes,[156] and 94 out of 100 on Metacritic.[157]

The Sopranos has been called "perhaps the greatest pop-culture masterpiece of its day" by Vanity Fair contributor Peter Biskind.[22] Remnick called the show "the richest achievement in the history of television."[155] In 2002, TV Guide ranked The Sopranos fifth on their list of the "Top 50 TV Shows of All Time,"[158] while the series was only in its fourth season. In 2007, Channel 4 (UK) named The Sopranos the greatest television series of all time.[159]

The first season of the series received overwhelmingly positive reviews.[135] Following its initial airing in 1999, The New York Times stated, "[The Sopranos] just may be the greatest work of American popular culture of the last quarter century."[26] In 2007, Roger Holland of PopMatters wrote, "the debut season of The Sopranos remains the crowning achievement of American television."[160]

Time Out New York's Andrew Johnston had high praise for the series, stating: "Together, Chase and his fellow writers (including Terence Winter and Mad Men creator Matthew Weiner) produced the legendary Great American Novel, and it's 86 episodes long."[161] Johnston asserted the preeminence of The Sopranos as opposed to The Wire and Deadwood in a debate with television critics Alan Sepinwall and Matt Zoller Seitz,[162] both of whom would later include The Sopranos in their 2016 book titled TV (The Book) as the 2nd greatest American television series of all time, behind only The Simpsons and ahead of The Wire, with Seitz considering the show's ending to be the greatest ending for any television show.[163]

In November and December 2009, many television critics named The Sopranos the best series of the decade and all time in articles summarizing the decade in television. In numbered lists over the best television programs, The Sopranos frequently ranked first or second, almost always competing with The Wire.[150] In 2013, TV Guide ranked The Sopranos No. 2 in its list of The 60 Greatest Dramas of All Time,[164] In the same year, the Writers Guild of America named it the best-written television series of all time[165] and TV Guide ranked it as the greatest show of all time.[16] A 2015 The Hollywood Reporter survey of 2,800 actors, producers, directors, and other industry people named The Sopranos as their #6 favorite show.[166] In 2016, Rolling Stone ranked it first on the magazine's list of 100 Greatest TV Shows of All Time.[7] In September 2019, The Guardian ranked the show first on its list of the 100 best TV shows of the 21st century, stating that it "hastened TV's transformation into a medium where intelligence, experimentation and depth were treasured" and describing it as "something to aspire to" for anyone currently making TV.[167]

Certain episodes have frequently been singled out by critics as the show's best. These include the pilot, titled "The Sopranos", "College" and "I Dream of Jeannie Cusamano" of the first season; "The Knight in White Satin Armor" and "Funhouse" of the second; "Employee of the Month", "Pine Barrens" and "Amour Fou" of the third; "Whoever Did This" and "Whitecaps" of the fourth; "Irregular Around the Margins" and "Long Term Parking" of the fifth and "Members Only", "Join the Club", "Kennedy and Heidi", "The Second Coming", "The Blue Comet" and "Made in America" of the sixth season.[168][169][170][171][172][173][174]

The Sopranos won and was nominated for many awards throughout its original broadcast. It was nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Drama Series in every year it was eligible and is the first cable TV series to receive a nomination for the award. After being nominated for and losing the award in 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2003 (losing the first time to The Practice and the last three to The West Wing), The Sopranos won the award in 2004, and again in 2007. Its 2004 win made The Sopranos the first series on a cable network to win the award,[175] while its 2007 win made the show the first drama series since Upstairs, Downstairs in 1977 to win the award after it had finished airing.[176] The show earned 21 nominations for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series and won the award six times, with creator David Chase receiving three awards.[177]

The Sopranos won at least one Emmy Award for acting in every eligible year except 2006 and 2007. James Gandolfini and Edie Falco were each nominated six times for Outstanding Lead Actor and Actress, respectively, both winning a total of three awards. Joe Pantoliano won an Emmy for Outstanding Supporting Actor in 2003, and Michael Imperioli and Drea de Matteo also won Emmys in 2004 for their supporting roles on the show. Other actors who have received Emmy nominations for the series include Lorraine Bracco (in the Lead Actress and Supporting Actress categories), Dominic Chianese, Nancy Marchand, Aida Turturro, Tim Daly, John Heard, Annabella Sciorra and Steve Buscemi, who was also nominated for directing the episode "Pine Barrens".[177]

In 1999 and 2000, The Sopranos earned two consecutive George Foster Peabody Awards.[178][179] Only two other series have won the award in consecutive years: Northern Exposure (1991 and 1992) and The West Wing (1999 and 2000).[180] The show also received numerous nominations at the Golden Globe Awards (winning the award for Best Drama Series in 2000)[181] and the major guild awards (Directors,[182] Producers,[183] Writers,[184] and Actors).[185]

The Sopranos had a significant effect on the shape of the American television industry. It has been characterized by critics as one of the most influential artistic works of the 2000s and has been cited as helping to turn serial television into a legitimate art form on the same level as feature films, literature, and theater.[75][149][186] Time Magazine editor James Poniewozik wrote in 2007, "This mafia saga showed just how complex and involving TV storytelling could be, inspiring an explosion of ambitious dramas on cable and off."[149]

Maureen Ryan of PopMatters described The Sopranos as the most influential television drama ever. "No one-hour drama series has had a bigger impact on how stories are told on the small screen, or more influence on what kind of fare we've been offered by an ever-growing array of television networks."[75]

Hal Boedeker stated in PopMatters in 2007 that the series was "widely influential for revealing that cable would accommodate complex series about dark characters. The Sopranos ushered in Six Feet Under, The Shield, Rescue Me, and Big Love."[186] Breaking Bad creator, Vince Gilligan said in 2013 shortly after Gandolfini's death, "Without Tony Soprano, there would be no Walter White."[187]

Weiner said that when he became a writer for The Sopranos after having written the Mad Men pilot, "Whatever I had intended [Mad Men] to be ... was very different after seeing how seriously David Chase took human behavior. Real human behavior", giving "Maidenform" and how Peggy Olson's baby affects her as examples.[188]

The series helped establish HBO as producers of critically acclaimed and commercially successful original television series. Michael Flaherty of The Hollywood Reporter has stated that The Sopranos "helped launch [HBO's] reputation as a destination for talent looking for cutting-edge original series work."[37]

The show has frequently been criticized for perpetuating negative stereotypes about Italian Americans. Several major organizations have voiced their concern that The Sopranos presents a very distorted and harmful stereotype of Italian Americans and their cultural values, including the National Italian American Foundation, Order Sons of Italy in America, Unico National, and the Italic Institute of America.[189][190][191]

In 2000, officials in Essex County, New Jersey, denied producers permission to film scenes in the South Mountain Reservation, which is county-owned property, by Essex County, New Jersey Executive James Treffinger, who argued that the show depicts Italian Americans "in stereotypical fashion".[192] Ironically, Treffinger was later convicted of corruption charges and imprisoned.[193][194] In 2002, organizers of the New York City Columbus Day Parade won an injunction preventing Mayor Michael Bloomberg from inviting cast members of The Sopranos to participate in the parade.[195]

Fairleigh Dickinson University's PublicMind conducted a national survey in August 2001 which polled 800 people. 37% said that they watched the show regularly, and 65% of this group (192 people, or 24% of the total) disagreed that the show negatively portrayed Italian Americans. Professor William Roberts was associated with the poll, and is the author of several books on modern Italian history; he commented that: "The show's inflated image of organized crime casts a shadow over both the state and its Italian American community."[196]

At the end of the series, the PublicMind conducted a second national survey on The Sopranos. In this poll, 41% of the 776 people polled said that they watched the show regularly, and 61% of this group (194 people, or 25% of the total) disagreed with the idea that the show portrayed Italian Americans in a negative light. Professor Roberts stated: "The show helped to perpetuate one of the more problematic and stereotypical images of Italian Americans. Both Italian and Italian American cultures have much more diverse and interesting heritages than the American public generally realizes."[197] Humanities professor Camille Paglia, herself an Italian American, has spoken negatively about The Sopranos, arguing that its depiction of Italian Americans was inaccurate, inauthentic, and dated.[198]

Chase has defended his show, saying that it is not meant to stereotype all Italian Americans, only to depict a small criminal subculture.[199]

A video game based on the series titled The Sopranos: Road to Respect was released for the PlayStation 2 by THQ in November 2006.

In March 2018, New Line Cinema announced that they had purchased a film detailing The Sopranos background story, set in the 1960s and '70s during, and in the wake of, the Newark riots. The 2021 film, The Many Saints of Newark, is written by David Chase and Lawrence Konner and directed by Alan Taylor.[17][18] Alessandro Nivola was cast in the film as Christopher Moltisanti's father Dickie, and Michael Gandolfini, James Gandolfini's son, as the younger version of Tony Soprano.[19][200] Vera Farmiga, Jon Bernthal, Ray Liotta, Corey Stoll, Billy Magnussen and John Magaro are other cast members.[201][202][203] The film was initially scheduled to be released on September 25, 2020,[204] however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States, its release date was rescheduled to March 12, 2021.[205] It was then delayed again to September 24, 2021.[206]

Several cast members of The Sopranos have started podcasts regarding the series. Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa began hosting a podcast called Talking Sopranos on April 6, 2020, where the two provide inside info as they follow The Sopranos series episode by episode.[207][208] By September 2020, the podcast had reached over five million downloads.[209] Drea de Matteo and Chris Kushner also began hosting a rewatch podcast on March 13, 2020, called Made Women.[210]

On September 17, 2020, Imperioli and Schirripa signed a deal with HarperCollins book imprint William Morrow and Company to write an oral history of the show.[209]