Though it made its debut back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, The Sopranos has managed to make more than just a name for itself. While it earned a lot of recognition and commendation from critics and general audiences from all across the globe during its airing days, the crime drama also made sure to leave an impact that would follow for decades to come.
This is evident from how the show has been raging as one of the most popular choices among audiences as of late, the fanbase of which especially consists of Gen-Z young buds. But while such tremendous acclaim should make its actors proud of it all, the show’s late lead James Gandolfini’s co-star Michael Imperioli predicted he wouldn’t have been all that happy about it all.
Michael Imperioli feels James Gandolfini wouldn’t be pleased with The Sopranos’ ever-increasing fame
From 1999 to 2007, The Sopranos raged for a little over eight years as it ruled the screens with the life of James Gandolfini‘s anxiety-stricken mobster boss of the Soprano family, Tony Soprano. While it worked perfectly throughout that time, the show somehow managed to blow up with the passing decades by becoming one of the most favorite top-picks of the Gen-Z.
However, Michael Imperioli, who embodied Tony’s nephew the deferential and ambitious Christopher Moltisanti for the screens, feels that the late leading protagonist of the masterpiece wouldn’t have been all that thrilled about the show’s tremendous success in today’s day and age. And, looking at it from Gandolfini’s point of view, it’s only understandable why.
In an interview with The Independent, when asked about what the late star would have made of this success, Imperioli said, “I think it would annoy him!” As surprising as it may seem, the reason behind it is simple: Gandolfini wasn’t big on all those press interviews and talk shows, and his press-shy self wouldn’t have appreciated having to give many interviews for the same.
Currently, the serial psychological crime drama has been gaining a lot of fame among younger audiences—more precisely, among Gen-Z—since its new-found popularity in 2020, when WarnerMedia claimed it experienced a 179% rise in viewers of the series via the US streaming service HBO Now. This is to say it would have brought forward quite a few interviews of the cast, for sure.
That being said, as Imperioli continued to explain, “If [the show’s resurgence] put him in a position where people wanted him to speak to the press or go to events, I doubt he would do it.” That does make for a valid reason to not be proud of the very show’s success that brought him worldwide fame and accolades. But there’s something else Gandolfini would have been proud of.
James Gandolfini would have been proud of his son for the prequel film, though
While gaining attention among Gen-Z is one thing, the series from the early 2000s also proved to be successful enough to spawn a prequel film, The Many Saints of Newark — one that had James Gandolfini‘s very own son, Michael Gandolfini, leading it as the younger version of the character the late actor embodied for more than eight years, i.e. Tony Soprano.
As Imperioli continued to share, he feels that James may not have been all that happy about his own show blowing up, but would have been on cloud nine while celebrating the success of his son, Michael. Impreioli honestly confessed, “I think he’d be proud as hell of his son. I think that would make him really happy.” Well, for sure it would.
The Sopranos can currently be streamed on Hulu.
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