With the first “The Many Saints of Newark” trailer, Michael Gandolifini hits the scene as young Tony Soprano, the role his late father James Gandolfini made famous in HBO’s groundbreaking series “The Sopranos.”
In the long-awaited, initial footage we see young Tony’s high aptitude and college ambitions undercut by Dickie Moltisanti (Alessandro Nivola), who lures him into an underworld swirling with violence and predatory crime.
Watch the preview, here:
The new film is set in the combustible era of the Newark riots, when rival gangsters began to rise up and challenge the DiMeo crime family’s hold over New Jersey.
Other familiar characters also make appearances, including Johnny, Junior and Livia Soprano — Tony’s father, uncle and mother — respectively played by Jon Bernthal, Corey Stoll and Vera Farmiga.
Michael Gandolfini never watched a minute of “The Sopranos” prior to his audition with the show’s creator, David Chase, who, in 2019, was casting for Young Tony in the upcoming prequel film.
Gandolfini got the part, and in an interview with Esquire he discussed sitting down for the first time and watching the HBO mobster series from beginning to end:
“It was an intense process. Because, as an actor, I had to watch this guy who created the role, to look for mannerisms, voice, all those things I would have to echo. But then I’d also be seeing my father. I think what made it so hard was I had to do it alone. I was just sitting alone in my dark apartment, watching my dad all the time. I started having crazy dreams. I had one where I auditioned for David and I looked down at my hands, and they were my dad’s hands.”
“The Many Saints of Newark” will open in theaters October 1 (streaming on HBO Max for 31 days following theatrical release), USA Today reports.
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