2020 has seen HBO’s mafia series win fresh fans, as a new generation relate to the emotional struggles of its antihero protagonist, and its stars preserve its legacy
When the first episode of The Sopranos aired in January 1999, people weren’t sure what to expect. Two months later, in March, Robert De Niro would star in the movie Analyse This, a mafia comedy about a mob boss who, like Tony Soprano, seeks the support of a therapist. But for most people at the time, the worlds of the cosa nostra and mental health had been quite separate. And though Analyze This was a blockbuster, The Sopranos was airing on the cable channel HBO, which boasted only 11 million subscribers at the time.
But The Sopranos was a hit, with its mix of drama, humour, sex and betrayal, and darkly comic undertones. Steve Schirripa, who played lovable gangster Bobby “Bacala” Baccalierri, remembers a conversation he had with the late James Gandolfini, who played the show’s complicated protagonist Tony Soprano. “Jim,” he says in a thick New York accent, “thought it wasn’t going anywhere. He thought he’d shoot the pilot, pick up the money for it and move on to the next thing.”
