Michael Gandolfini

Last updated

Michael Gandolfini
Born (1999-05-10) May 10, 1999 (age 25)
New York City, U.S.
Education New York University
OccupationActor
Years active2011–present
Parent

Michael Gandolfini (born May 10, 1999) is an American actor. Gandolfini made his major film debut in Ocean's 8 (2018) and appeared in The Many Saints of Newark (2021), in which he played the role of Tony Soprano, which was originally portrayed by his late father James Gandolfini in the television series The Sopranos .

Contents

Early life

Gandolfini was born on May 10, 1999, in New York City [1] [2] [3] [4] to actor James Gandolfini and Marcy Wudarski. He is of Italian, Polish, and Slovak heritage, and has a younger half-sister from his father's second marriage. While he was a teenager, Gandolfini enjoyed performing, but his father advised against an acting career; he wanted him to pursue sports or "be a director. They have the power," he said. [3] [5]

His father James Gandolfini died at age 51 of a heart attack in Rome on June 19, 2013. [6]

Career

After his father's death, Michael Gandolfini decided to pursue acting. He enrolled at New York University after graduating from high school. After early auditions, he was cast in the HBO drama series The Deuce as Joey Dwyer. [7] In 2019, he was cast in The Many Saints of Newark to play the young version of Tony Soprano, the role played by his father in the television series The Sopranos . [8] Gandolfini had never watched the show. He described watching it while preparing for the role as an intense process. [7] He was later cast in the Russo brothers' crime drama Cherry . [9] In 2024, he was cast in Warfare, an A24 war movie written and directed by Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza. [10]

Filmography

Film


YearTitleRoleNotes
2011 Down the Shore Kid on the ride
2018 Ocean's 8 Busboy
2019The Boy, the Dog and the ClownWeston
2021 Cherry Cousin Joe
The Many Saints of Newark Tony Soprano
2022 The Independent Justin
2023 Cat Person Peter
Landscape with Invisible Hand Hunter Marsh
Beau Is Afraid Beau's Son
2024 Bob Marley: One Love Howard Bloom
TBA Warfare Filming

Television

Key
Denotes series that have not yet been released
YearTitleRoleNotes
2013James Gandolfini: Tribute to a FriendSelfTelevision documentary
2018–2019 The Deuce Joey DwyerRecurring role, 10 episodes
2020 Acting for a Cause Benvolio 1 episode
2022 The Offer Andy CalhounMiniseries, 1 episode
2023 Extrapolations Rowan ChopinMiniseries, 1 episode
2025 Daredevil: Born Again Daniel BladeUpcoming series; Post-production

Related Research Articles

<i>The Sopranos</i> American crime drama television series (1999–2007)

The Sopranos is an American crime drama television series created by David Chase. The series revolves around Tony Soprano, a New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster who struggles to balance his family life with his role as the leader of a criminal organization, which he reluctantly explores during therapy sessions with psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi. The series also features Tony's various family members, Mafia colleagues, and rivals in prominent roles—most notably his wife Carmela and his protégé and distant cousin Christopher Moltisanti.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alex Garland</span> British writer and director (born 1970)

Alexander Medawar Garland is an English author, screenwriter, and director. He rose to prominence with his novel The Beach (1996). He subsequently received praise for writing the Danny Boyle films 28 Days Later (2002) and Sunshine (2007), as well as Never Let Me Go (2010) and Dredd (2012). In video games, he co-wrote Enslaved: Odyssey to the West (2010) and served as a story supervisor on DmC: Devil May Cry (2013).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Iler</span> American actor (born 1985)

Robert Michael Iler is an American former actor. He is best known for his portrayal of A.J. Soprano on The Sopranos. His film roles include Tadpole (2002), and Daredevil (2003).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Soprano</span> Fictional character on television series The Sopranos

Anthony John Soprano is a fictional character and the protagonist of the HBO crime drama television series The Sopranos, and portrayed by James Gandolfini. Soprano is a member of the Italian-American Mafia and, especially later in the series, acts as the boss of the fictional North Jersey DiMeo crime family. Usually referred to as Tony, the character was conceived by Sopranos creator and showrunner David Chase, who was also largely responsible for the character's story arc throughout the show's six seasons. Gandolfini was ultimately cast in the role ahead of several other actors including Steven Van Zandt and Michael Rispoli. The character is loosely based on stories from and about an assortment of La Cosa Nostra figures and especially on real-life New Jersey mobsters Ruggerio "Richie the Boot" Boiardo, boss of the North Jersey Genovese crime family, and Vincent "Vinny Ocean" Palermo, a former caporegime and de facto boss of the DeCavalcante crime family. Bobby Boriello and Mark Damiano II portrayed Tony Soprano as a child in one episode each and Danny Petrillo played the character as a teenager in three episodes. William Ludwig portrayed him as a child and James Gandolfini's son Michael Gandolfini portrayed a teenage version of the character in the 2021 prequel film The Many Saints of Newark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve Schirripa</span> American actor (born 1957)

Steven Ralph Schirripa is an American actor. He is best known for portraying Bobby Baccalieri on The Sopranos, Leo Boykewich on The Secret Life of the American Teenager, and Detective Anthony Abetemarco on Blue Bloods. Schirripa is host of two Investigation Discovery series: Karma's A B*tch! and Nothing Personal. He is the voice of Roberto in the Open Season film series.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Chase</span> American writer, director and producer (born 1945)

David Henry Chase is an American writer, producer, and director. He is best known for being the creator, head writer, and executive producer of the HBO drama The Sopranos, which aired for six seasons between 1999 and 2007. Chase has also produced and written for shows such as The Rockford Files, I'll Fly Away, and Northern Exposure. He created the original series Almost Grown which aired for 10 episodes in 1988 and 1989. He has won seven Emmy Awards. Chase's film debut came in 2012 with Not Fade Away, followed by The Many Saints of Newark (2021), a prequel film to the TV series The Sopranos.

"The Sopranos", also known as "Pilot", is the first episode of the HBO television drama series, The Sopranos, which premiered on January 10, 1999. It was written and directed by the series creator and executive producer David Chase.

"The Happy Wanderer" is the 19th episode of the HBO original series The Sopranos and the sixth of the show's second season. It was written by Frank Renzulli, directed by John Patterson, and originally aired on February 20, 2000.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James Gandolfini</span> American actor (1961–2013)

James John Gandolfini Jr. was an American actor. He was best known for his portrayal of Tony Soprano, the Italian-American Mafia crime boss in HBO's television series The Sopranos (1999–2007). For this role, he won three Emmy Awards, five Screen Actors Guild Awards, and one Golden Globe Award. His role as Tony Soprano has been described as one of the greatest and most influential performances in television history.

<i>The Sopranos: Road to Respect</i> 2006 video game

The Sopranos: Road to Respect is a 2006 video game by American developer 7 Studios based on the HBO series The Sopranos (1999–2007). The game's storyline takes place between the fifth and sixth seasons and centers on Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero's illegitimate son, Joey LaRocca, as he works his way up in Tony Soprano's crime family.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Corey Stoll</span> American actor (born 1976)

Corey Daniel Stoll is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Congressman Peter Russo on the Netflix political thriller series House of Cards (2013–2016), for which he received a Golden Globe nomination in 2013, and Dr. Ephraim Goodweather on the FX horror drama series The Strain (2014–2017). From 2020 to 2023, he portrayed Michael Prince, a business rival to protagonist Bobby Axelrod, in the Showtime series Billions. He was also a regular cast member on the NBC drama series Law & Order: LA (2010–2011).

Michael Aronov is an American actor who has worked in film, television and theatre. In 2017, he won the Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Play for his role as Uri Savir in the Broadway play Oslo. He is also known for playing the role of Anton Baklanov, a refusenik scientist in The Americans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Noah Centineo</span> American actor (born 1996)

Noah Gregory Centineo is an American actor. He began his career performing on television and had a main role in the television series The Fosters from 2015 to 2018. He achieved wider recognition by starring in the Netflix romantic comedy films To All the Boys I've Loved Before (2018), Sierra Burgess Is a Loser (2018), and The Perfect Date (2019). In 2022, Centineo played Atom Smasher in the superhero film Black Adam and starred in the Netflix spy-adventure series The Recruit.

Taylor John Smith is an American actor. He is known for his role as John Keene in the series Sharp Objects. Notable films in which he has appeared are Wolves (2016), You Get Me (2017), Hunter Killer (2018), The Outpost (2020), Shadow in the Cloud (2020), and Where the Crawdads Sing (2022).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Melton</span> American actor (born 1991)

Charles Michael Melton is an American actor. He is known for his roles as Reggie Mantle in the CW series Riverdale (2017–2023) and a young man married to a much-older woman in the drama film May December (2023). His critically praised performance in the latter earned him a nomination for a Golden Globe Award.

Henrique Chagas Moniz de Aragão Gonzaga, known professionally as Henry Zaga, is a Brazilian actor.

<i>The Many Saints of Newark</i> 2021 film directed by Alan Taylor

The Many Saints of Newark is a 2021 American crime drama film directed by Alan Taylor and written by David Chase and Lawrence Konner. A prequel to Chase's HBO crime drama series The Sopranos, it takes place during the 1960s and 1970s in Newark, New Jersey. The film follows a violent gang war from the perspectives of mobster Dickie Moltisanti and his teenage nephew, Tony Soprano, in the midst of the city's 1967 riots. It stars Alessandro Nivola as Dickie and Michael Gandolfini as Tony, the character originated by his father in the series, with Leslie Odom Jr., Jon Bernthal, Corey Stoll, Billy Magnussen, Michela De Rossi, John Magaro, Ray Liotta, and Vera Farmiga in supporting roles. It was Liotta's final release performance before his death in 2022.

Nicholas Anthony Vallelonga is an American actor and filmmaker. He is best known for co-writing and producing the film Green Book, for which he received two Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay and Best Picture. He also won two Golden Globes in the same categories, as well as the PGA Award for Best Film. He has also directed the films In the Kingdom of the Blind, the Man with One Eye Is King, Choker and Stiletto, and co-wrote the screenplay to Deadfall.

Warfare is an upcoming war film written and directed by Ray Mendoza and Alex Garland. The film stars Charles Melton, D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, Joseph Quinn, Kit Connor, Cosmo Jarvis, Will Poulter and Finn Bennett.

References

  1. Jacobs, Deborah L. (August 7, 2013). "James Gandolfini's Will Reflects A Parent's Dilemma". Forbes . Archived from the original on August 12, 2013. Retrieved January 23, 2019. His son Michael, from his marriage to Marcy Wudarski, was 14 when Gandolfini died suddenly in June [2013]...
  2. Ryan, Joal (October 18, 2002). "Gandolfini Comes Clean". E! News . Retrieved January 23, 2019.
  3. 1 2 "James Gandolfini's Son Michael Says His Dad Never Wanted Him to Be an Actor". etonline.com. August 13, 2019.
  4. "James Gandolfini discovered by 13-year-old son". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved June 20, 2013.
  5. Pope, Nick (September 20, 2021). "The Making of Michael Gandolfini". Esquire UK. Hearst UK.
  6. "James Gandolfini Cause of Death: Autopsy Confirms Heart Attack Killed 'Sopranos' Star, Source Says". HuffPost . Retrieved June 11, 2015.
  7. 1 2 "Michael Gandolfini Opens Up About the Difficult Decision to Portray Tony Soprano". Esquire. August 13, 2019.
  8. "'Sopranos' Prequel Film Finds Young Tony: Michael Gandolfini Is Chip Off Old Block". Deadline Hollywood. January 22, 2019.
  9. Kroll, Justin (October 3, 2019). "Ciara Bravo Joins Tom Holland in Russo Brother's Next Film (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
  10. https://deadline.com/2024/04/michael-gandolfini-noah-centineo-henrique-zaga-taylor-john-smith-aidan-bradley-evan-holtzman-ray-mendoza-alex-garlands-warfare-a24-1235880092/