Bada bing—the first trailer for Oscar-winning director Alex Gibney’s two-part documentary Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos has arrived.
Gibney, the director behind previous stellar HBO docs Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief and The Inventor: Out for Blood in Silicon Valley, sets his sights on one of the most beloved television series of all time, a bonafide cultural phenomenon that ushered in a new era of darker, hugely ambitious television. David Chase and the Sopranos arrives 25 years after the series debuted on HBO and centers on the creator and mastermind behind the series, looking to shed light on Chase’s methods, how he and his writer’s room were able to unlock a mafia story unlike any before, and what drove Chase to explore the wounded psyche of Tony Soprano (the late, great James Gandolfini) in a portrayal that made both men superstars.
The trailer touches upon Chase’s relationship with his mother (The Sopranos features one of the all-time great dysfunctional mother/son relationships between Tony and his mom, Livia, played by a ferocious Nancy Marchand) and the series’ unblinking look into the darkest aspects of the human psyche.
“The Sopranos really redefined what people are willing and what people want to watch at home,” says Michael Imperioli, one of the series’ many breakout stars. The doc features interviews with other stars from the series, including Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco, Drea de Matteo, and Steven Van Zandt, as well as writers and producers. The trailer reveals some of the cast’s early audition videos—including Imperioli and de Matteo, behind-the-scenes footage, and more.
It’s a great marriage of a top-flight documentarian and sensational material, with a central figure in Chase who is as compelling as the many characters he helped bring to the screen and, in the process, changed the television landscape forever.
Check out the trailer below. Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos premieres on HBO on September 7.
