James Gandolfini His son was born in the year the Sopranos aired its first episode, and he was consistently banned from sets until the final season.
James’s only child, Michael Gandoflini, shared that he would visit his father on set, but was only allowed to be in his trailer.
“When I visit him on the “Sopranos” set, I hang out in his trailer. I had my own toys and little drawers of things. Wall Street Journal.
James Gandolfini’s son Michael was banned from the “Sopranos” set as a child. (Getty Images)
Michael said he wanted his parents James and Mercy Udalski to enjoy being a child.
“Sopranos” star James Gandolfini struggled on set from “excess consumption”: Book
“I already understood the idea of filmmaking and wanted to be a part of it. When I was left out on set, my parents wanted me to be protective and enjoy being a child.
“My parents didn’t want to let me go outside on set because of the violence and language of the show.”
After his parents divorced when he was three years old, Michael didn’t see his father frequently, as the “sopranos” occupy a lot of his time.
Michael is the only child of James Gandolfini and Mercy Udalski. (Elizabeth Glaser Kmazur/Wireimage for Childhood AIDS)
“When I was three, my parents divorced, so my dad moved to a nearby Tribeca apartment. He was already playing Tony Soprano in “The Sopranos,” and was away for about eight months at a time. My mom, Mercy, was home with me,” Michael said.
He continued, “After their divorce, my parents were nearby. My family friends came in to help me raise me when my father was away and I enjoyed being home alone. I can write and perform plays for my father later.”
However, when Michael was 12, he and his mother moved to Los Angeles, and “The Sopranos” was over, so his interest in acting and being present in television diminished.
James Gandolfini kissed Michael on the cheek in the 2007 Toronto Raptors vs. New Jersey Nets game. (James Devanney/Wire Image)
When he was in high school, he made several school plays and eventually decided to go to NYU to pursue acting.
“Oceans 8” was his first major role in 2018, and he starred as a young Tony Soprano in “Many Saints of Newark.”
“The ‘many saints of Newark’ were transformative roles. To play Tony as a teenager, I had to get a full sense of him, but I never saw an episode of “The Sopranos,” admitted Michael.
James Gandolfini starred as a Tony Soprano in the hit drama series The Sopranos. (Getty Images)
“Preparing for a series wasn’t something like watching a home movie. Tony was a role and there were a lot of layers to what my dad was doing with the character,” he pointed out.
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James has passed away Suddenly in 2013 after suffering a heart attack while on a family holiday with Michel in Italy. James was 51 when he passed away, and Michael was 13.
Michael told the outlet that his father’s death was a “heavy blow.”
“I’m still in a relationship with my father. I talk to him whenever I’m looking for guidance.
Michael Gandolfini attended the 25th anniversary ceremony of HBO’s The Sopranos in January 2024. (dia dipasupil/wireimage)
In the HBO series, James starred as Tony Soprano, the boss of a cruel mob with a tortured spirit. The show ran for six seasons between 1999 and 2007.
In 2024, “The Sopranos” location manager Mark Cumin told Fox News Digital that James was Fight Offset Off Demon.
“He was shy,” recalls Camir. “He was noisy or noisy. He wasn’t scared. Tony often did. Jim almost stayed with himself… But you saw this powerful character commanding the room. He became Tony on set.
“The Sopranos” location manager Mark Cummin previously told Fox News Digital that James fought the Demon at the Offset. (Getty Images)
“You saw how much he was being disturbed by what he had to say in character,” Cumin revealed. “He’s going to argue [creator] David [Chase]’I don’t want to say these words. I don’t know why he has to be overtly racist or sexist. “David was like usual, but that’s a character, Jim. Get used to it. ” Jim figured it out, but it only hurt him that way. He wasn’t like that at all. ”
Despite his quiet attitude, Gandolfini was generous on the set. And I never thought about giving my help to anyone who needed it again.
“He’s going to write a check for people,” Cumin said. “Every Friday night he’ll pay for this huge sushi banquet for the shooting crew. Every Friday night, trucks will roll out and this massive spread will come out.
Stephen Van Zandt as Silvio Dante, James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano, and Tony Sirico as Paulie Walnitz from The Sopranos. (Getty Images)
But Gandolfini also had another aspect. His drinking was well known on the set, Camiin claimed.
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“That’s why I lost the date,” Camiin claimed. “HBO wrote it on a one-year contract he pays [if he missed a day] Because filming such a show was very expensive. At the time, I think it would cost between $150,000 and $250,000 a day. No one likes losing such money and not doing anything. I know they wrote to his contract that he would pay on the day he missed. I don’t think they ever indicted him. ”
James Gandolfini was known to be extremely generous with the cast and crew of “The Sopranos.” (Getty Images)
“He had those problems,” Camie reflected. “I think part of his personality was uncomfortable with overcoming embarrassment and achieving success so quickly. Who knows?”
