See the Original “Sopranos” Actors vs. Who’s Playing Them in the Prequel
Fourteen years after the show’s infamously oblique finale, The Sopranos is coming back—in the form of a prequel movie. The Many Saints of Newark, which is being released in theaters and on HBO Max on Oct. 1, explores the early years of Tony Soprano and expands the lore of DiMeo crime family figures who fans only ever heard about or saw in flashbacks. While some of its characters, including protagonist Dickie Moltisanti (Alessandro Nivola), never appeared on the original award-winning show, we’ll see many familiar faces as they were in the ’60s, when the film takes place. So if you ever wondered what Paulie Walnuts or Janice Soprano were like when they were young, you’re about to get your answer.
The Many Saints of Newark boasts some impressively on-point casting choices, so we’re looking at the original Sopranos cast side-by-side with the actors playing them in the prequel movie. Read on to see how they compare.
Ton Soprano (played by James Gandolfini on the show and Michael Gandolfini in the movie)
James Gandolfini won three Emmys for playing New Jersey mob boss Tony Soprano, and his performance is remembered by many as one of the best and most influential in television history. He died at the age of 51 in 2013, six years after the show ended. His son, Michael Gandolfini, who was only 14 when his father passed away, won the role of young Tony Soprano in The Many Saints of Newark by auditioning, like any other actor. Watching the show for the first time in preparation was the most difficult part of the process, he told Esquire.
“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,” he said in 2019. “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 [creator] David [Chase] and I looked down at my hands, and they were my dad’s hands.”
Junior Soprano (played by Dominic Chianese on the show and Corey Stoll in the movie)
On the HBO series, Tony’s uncle Corrado “Junior” Soprano is the official boss of their crime family. He’s played by Dominic Chianese, who had his first major movie role in The Godfather Part II and is still working at age 90. In the prequel, House of Cards and Ant-Man actor Corey Stoll portrays Junior. He told Rolling Stone that he had seen the six-season series three times through by the time The Many Saints of Newark came around. He said that Junior was always one of his favorites.
“He got so many of the best lines,” Stoll said. “And as a character, he deepened as the series went on. He started out as this somewhat buffoonish villain. And if you take it all the way to the very last scene that he has, there was this incredible pathos. There’s a real deep sadness in him that’s undeniable.”
Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri (played by Tony Sirico on the show and Billy Magnussen in the movie)
Playing Paulie on The Sopranos came somewhat naturally to Tony Sirico in one particular way: Before he became an actor, he had been arrested 28 times. While the HBO show is still the credit he’s best known for, the 79-year-old actor has also appeared in dozens of films, including Bullets Over Broadway, Cop Land, and Dead Presidents.
Taking over as a younger Paulie for the film is Billy Magnussen, who moviegoers may know from the live-action Aladdin, Game Night, or Into the Woods. Speaking to The Playlist’s Four Quadrant podcast about the experience, Magnussen raved, “Oh my gosh. I was a gangster in The Sopranos! Are you kidding me? It was a great time.”
Silvio Dante (played by Steven Van Zandt on the show and John Magaro in the movie)
Steven Van Zandt, who’s now 70, was already New Jersey royalty when he made his first appearance as Silvio on The Sopranos. The actor and musician is otherwise most famously known for playing guitar in Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band. In The Many Saints of Newark, Silvio will be portrayed by John Magaro, of First Cow, Orange Is the New Black, and The Umbrella Academy.
“I will say that for those of us who had to play characters who were already established, that was a huge weight on our shoulders,” Magaro told NME of the film. “We know how much those characters mean to people. I think everyone who plays those characters really does a service, and I hope the fans don’t feel let down by that.”
Johnny Boy Soprano (played by Joseph Siravo on the show and Jon Bernthal in the movie)
In just a few flashbacks on the show, Tony’s already deceased father Johnny Boy Soprano is played by Joseph Siravo, who died at the age of 66 earlier this year. The film sees that part filled and filled out by Jon Bernthal of The Walking Dead and The Punisher fame. Bernthal told Rolling Stone that watching Michael Gandolfini step into his role was the most significant part of the experience for him, and that they became very close playing father and son.
“He gave me a watch that his dad used to wear, that is one of my most treasured items—not just because it belonged to my hero, but because Mikey gave it to me,” he said.
Livia Soprano (played by Nancy Marchand on the show and Vera Farmiga in the movie)
Nancy Marchand, who was also famous for the Mary Tyler Moore Show spinoff LouGrant, received several award nominations and wins for her work as Tony’s hard-edged and conniving mother, Livia Soprano. She died in 2000, when the show was still in production, and her death was written into the series.
Vera Farmiga (The Departed, The Conjuring series) steps into her shoes for The Many Saints of Newark—and it wasn’t her first time trying to enter the world of The Sopranos. In an interview with Rolling Stone, Farmiga remembered that she gave an unsuccessful audition for one of Tony’s girlfriends, Valentina La Paz, during the show’s fourth season.
“I didn’t know if I killed it or they were lukewarm. I couldn’t discern it,” she said of the part, which went to Leslie Bega. “Obviously, I didn’t kill it. It just wasn’t my time. Or maybe I sucked, I don’t know! God, even then it was regarded as the best TV show. Getting the role, Jesus, that would have been something.”
Janice Soprano (played by Aida Turturro on the show and Alexandra Intrator in the movie)
Aida Turturro, cousin of fellow actor John Turturro, portrayed Tony’s sister Janice, who was often disapproving of his business and was always dabbling in some new faith or hobby on The Sopranos. The 58-year-old actor has played roles on several other hit shows, including Grey’s Anatomy, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Law & Order: SVU, and, most recently, What We Do in the Shadows. Playing her younger counterpart in the prequel film is Alexandra Intrator, and the incredible resemblance between the two is already being called out.
Salvatore Bonpensiero (played by Vincent Pastore on the show and Samson Moeakiola in the movie)
The Sopranos’ Sal Bonpensiero is far from the only gangster VincentPastore, now 75, has ever played. He’s made a career of it, as well as appearing on reality shows like Celebrity Fit Club, Celebrity Apprentice, and Shark Tank. Playing a young Sal in the movie is Samson Moeakiola. The Many Saints of Newark is his first feature film credit; he’s also appeared in two shorts and an episode of Hawaii Five-O.
