Actor and pitbull lover Jon Bernthal recently discussed his new movie The Many Saints of Newark. The film is a prequel to the legendary HBO drama series The Sopranos and was co-written by series creator David Chase. In the interview, Bernthal talks about what fans can expect from the film and how it differs from the renowned TV show.
In Warner Bros. and HBO Max's The Many Saints of Newark, Bernthal plays Tony's father, Giovanni "Johnny Boy" Soprano. In The Sopranos, Johnny Boy is only ever seen in flashbacks, as the character died many years before the series takes place. Bernthal, an actor who is known for playing tough-guy roles such as the Marvel Comics vigilante The Punisher, seems perfect for the role of Johnny Boy, a character who is regarded as a legendary figure in the New Jersey Mafia.
“I think people are going to go in expecting The Sopranos — it’s not that," Bernthal said during an interview on Late Night with Seth Meyers. "I think that it was very smart that they set it in the past and it’s a genuine prequel. You will see that when [Chase] was writing this show, he clearly understood the full history of who these characters were. And for the real super-fans, I think it is going to be so much fun.” Bernthal also complimented his co-star Michael Gandolfini, who plays a young Tony Soprano in the film, the same role that made his late father James Gandolfini a household name. "I just feel really honored that I get to walk alongside him," Bernthal said of his young co-star, "I think he approached it with courage and real dedication.” In the interview, Bernthal also states that super-fans of The Sopranos will love The Many Saints of Newark because it portrays several events that were merely discussed in the series. Throughout The Soprano's seven-year run, Tony is frequently confronted with the reality that his beloved father was far from the perfect man he remembers him to be, so perhaps fans will see some of these early formative memories played out in The Many Saints of Newark.
Prequels are tricky, especially when delving into the past of a beloved tv show or movie. Sometimes fans prefer to leave that kind of stuff to their imagination. Perhaps The Many Saints of Newark has the added benefit of being a mob movie since The Godfather: Part II, another mafia film, is widely regarded as one of the best prequels of all time. That being said, director Francis Ford Coppola's follow up to the classic Mafia epic The Godfather is also half sequel, simultaneously showing the rise of Vito Corleone (Robert De Niro) in flashbacks while the film follows the exploits of his son Michael (Al Pacino) as he tries to maintain his own empire many years later.
Based on what we've seen in the trailers, The Many Saints of Newark appears to be 100% prequel, and while many characters from the series will appear in the movie, Chase has stated that the story belongs to the character Dickie Moltisanti (Alessandro Nivola). Dickie is the father of Christopher (Michael Imperioli) and was killed before the events of the series. As a result, he is only talked about by other characters on The Soprano's, and unlike Johnny Boy, he never appears in any flashbacks. Hopefully, this will give The Many Saints of Newark a fresh perspective while also allowing the film to stay true to what has been established in the series.
The Many Saints of Newark hits theatres and HBO Max on October 1st, 2021.
Source: Late Night with Seth Meyers