It’s official: David Chase, creator of groundbreaking drama The Sopranos, has been teasing the possibility of a Sopranos movie since 2016, but now, we have something to actually sink our teeth into. New Line has announced it is developing a Sopranos prequel, titled The Many Saints of Newark, penned by Chase and the HBO series' writer Lawrence Konner, Variety reports. Chase will also serve as producer on the film. Nicole Lambert will be an executive producer.
Some fan-favorite characters will appear in the movie, although a few will unfortunately not be able to appear. Notably, James Gandolfini, the star of the original series, died in 2013, and Frank Vincent, who played Phil Leotardo, died last year. Other actors who starred in the show and could conceivably make a comeback on the big screen include Edie Falco, Steven Van Zandt, Jamie‑Lynn Sigler, Lorraine Bracco, Michael Imperioli, Dominic Chianese, Steve Schirripa, and Tony Sirico.
(Pro tip: If you can’t wait until the prequel movie is released and need another way to quench your Sopranos thirst, there will be a massive Sopranos reunion in the upcoming movieSarah Q. Five of the Sopranos actors, including Tony Sirico and Vincent Pastore, are set to appear in it.)
The prequel movie will be set in Newark during the 1960s riots, when rivalries between groups of African-Americans and Italians gangs were tense and often deadly.
Although we don’t know any casting details yet, keeping the news of the time frame in mind, Deadline writer Mike Fleming, Jr. predicts we can be sure to see a few characters in the movie. Namely: Tony Soprano’s father Giovanni “Johnny Boy,” the former captain of the Soprano crew (played in the show by Joseph Siravo), a younger version of his wife Livia (played in the show’s first season by Nancy Marchand), and Tony’s uncle Junior, played by Chianese.
“David is a masterful storyteller and we, along with our colleagues at HBO, are thrilled that he has decided to revisit, and enlarge, the ‘Soprano’ universe in a feature film,” Warner Bros. Pictures Group chairman Toby Emmerich said of the prequel news.
The Sopranos was a legendary TV drama that is largely credited with popularizing the now giant HBO. It aired for six seasons from 1999 to 2007 and won a total of 21 Emmy Awards and five Golden Globes.
