SOPRANOS - ROBERT ILER as ANTHONY JUNIOR - Personally Signed Autograph Card A-RI - from the set issued by Inkworks in 2005
Robert Michael Iler (Born March 2, 1985) is an Irish-American actor, known for his portrayal of A.J. Soprano on The Sopranos which aired on HBO from 1999 to 2007.
Iler was born in New York City and is of Irish descent.
Iler appeared in the video for Marilyn Manson's single "Dope Hat" (1995).
By mid-1997, he was appearing in commercials for Pizza Hut, and attending three or four auditions a week. He had also appeared on Saturday Night Live and in some film parts, but nothing that brought him great recognition. It was then that he won the role of A.J. Soprano, the son of series lead Tony Soprano, on the HBO drama The Sopranos, which aired from 1999-2007. By May 2001, he had begun home schooling for his education.
In July 2001, Iler was arrested for the armed robbery of two Brazilian tourists in his Upper East Side neighborhood and for possession of marijuana. He pleaded guilty to a single charge of larceny and received three years' probation.
Iler was present on October 23, 2005 when the underground poker club Ace Point was raided by the police.
The Tic Code (1999) as Denny Harley
The Sopranos (1999–2007) as A.J. Soprano
Oz (1997–2003) as Game Show Contestant: Season 4, Episode 16
Tadpole (2002) as Charlie
Daredevil (2003) as Bully #1
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2004) Season 5, Episode 17 "Mean" as Troy Linsky
The Dead Zone (2004) Season 3, Episode 9 "Cycle of Violence" as Derek Rankin
Four Kings (2006) Rob
Law & Order (2009) Season 19, Episode 11 "Lucky Stiff" as Chad Klein
The Sopranos is an American crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based Italian-American mobster, and portrays the difficulties that he faces as he tries to balance his family life with his role as the leader of a criminal organization. These are explored during his therapy sessions with psychiatrist Jennifer Melfi (Lorraine Bracco). The series features Tony's family members, mafia colleagues, and rivals in prominent roles—most notably his wife, Carmela (Edie Falco), and his protégé/distant cousin, Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli).
The pilot was ordered in 1997, and the show premiered on HBO on January 10, 1999. It ran for six seasons totalling 86 episodes until June 10, 2007. Broadcast syndication followed in the U.S. and internationally. The Sopranos was produced by HBO, Chase Films, and Brad Grey Television. It was primarily filmed at Silvercup Studios in New York City, and on location in New Jersey. The executive producers throughout the show's run were David Chase, Brad Grey, Robin Green, Mitchell Burgess, Ilene S. Landress, Terence Winter, and Matthew Weiner.
The Sopranos is widely regarded as one of the greatest television series of all time. The series won a multitude of awards, including Peabody Awards for its first two seasons, 21 Primetime Emmy Awards, and five Golden Globe Awards. It has been the subject of critical analysis, controversy, and parody, and has spawned books, a video game, soundtrack albums, and assorted merchandise. Several members of the show's cast and crew were largely unknown to the public but have since had successful careers. In 2013, the Writers Guild of America named The Sopranos the best-written TV series of all time, while TV Guide ranked it the best television series of all time. In 2016, the series also ranked first in Rolling Stone's list of the 100 greatest TV shows of all time.
In March 2018, New Line Cinema announced that they have purchased a film detailing the Sopranos background story, set in the 1960s during the Newark riots. Titled The Many Saints of Newark, it is written by David Chase and Lawrence Konner and will be directed by Alan Taylor.
David Chase had worked as a television producer for more than 20 years before creating The Sopranos. He had been employed as a staff writer or producer for several television series, including Kolchak: The Night Stalker, Switch, The Rockford Files, I'll Fly Away, and Northern Exposure. He had also co-created the short-lived original series Almost Grown in 1988. He made his television directorial debut in 1986 with the "Enough Rope for Two" episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents. He also directed episodes of Almost Grown and I'll Fly Away in 1988 and 1992, respectively. In 1996, he wrote and directed the television film The Rockford Files: Punishment and Crime. He served as showrunner for I'll Fly Away and Northern Exposure in the 1990s. Chase won his first Emmy Award in 1978 for his work on The Rockford Files (shared with fellow producers) and his second for writing the 1980 television film Off the Minnesota Strip. By 1996, he was a coveted showrunner.
I want to tell a story about this particular man. I want to tell the story about the reality of being a mobster—or what I perceive to be the reality of life in organized crime. They aren't shooting each other every day. They sit around eating baked ziti and betting and figuring out who owes who money. Occasionally, violence breaks out—more often than it does in the banking world, perhaps.
David Chase, creator and showrunner of The Sopranos
The story of The Sopranos was initially conceived as a feature film about "a mobster in therapy having problems with his mother." Chase got some input from his manager Lloyd Braun and decided to adapt it into a television series. He signed a development deal in 1995 with production company Brillstein-Grey and wrote the original pilot script. He drew heavily from his personal life and his experiences growing up in New Jersey, and has stated that he tried to "apply [his own] family dynamic to mobsters." For instance, the tumultuous relationship between series protagonist Tony Soprano and his mother Livia is partially based on Chase's relationship with his own mother. He was also in psychotherapy at the time and modeled the character of Dr. Jennifer Melfi after his own psychiatrist.
Chase had been fascinated by organized crime and the mafia from an early age, witnessing such people growing up. He also was raised on classic gangster films, such as The Public Enemy, and the crime series The Untouchables. The series is partly inspired by the Boiardo family, a prominent New Jersey organized crime family when Chase was growing up, and partly on New Jersey's DeCavalcante family. He has mentioned American playwrights Arthur Miller and Tennessee Williams as influences on the show's writing, and Italian director Federico Fellini as an important influence on the show's cinematic style. The series was named after high school friends of his.
I said to myself, this show is about a guy who's turning 40. He's inherited a business from his dad. He's trying to bring it into the modern age. He's got all the responsibilities that go along with that. He's got an overbearing mom that he's still trying to get out from under. Although he loves his wife, he's had an affair. He's got two teenage kids, and he's dealing with the realities of what that is. He's anxious; he's depressed; he starts to see a therapist because he's searching for the meaning of his own life. I thought: the only difference between him and everybody I know is he's the Don of New Jersey.
Chris Albrecht, president of HBO Original Programming, 1995–2002.
Chase and producer Brad Grey pitched The Sopranos to several networks; Fox showed interest but passed on it after Chase presented them the pilot script. They eventually pitched the show to Chris Albrecht, president of HBO Original Programming, who decided to finance a pilot episode which was shot in 1997. Chase directed it himself. They finished the pilot and showed it to HBO executives, but the show was put on hold for several months. During this time, Chase considered asking HBO for additional funding to shoot 45 more minutes of footage and release The Sopranos as a feature film. In December 1997, HBO decided to produce the series and ordered 12 more episodes for a 13-episode season. The show premiered on HBO on January 10, 1999 with the pilot episode. The Sopranos was the second hour-long television drama series produced by HBO, the first being the prison drama Oz.
North Jersey prosecutor and municipal judge Robert Baer filed a breach of contract lawsuit against Chase in Trenton, New Jersey federal court, alleging that he helped to create the show. Baer lost the suit, but he won a ruling that a jury should decide how much he should be paid for services as a location scout, researcher, and story consultant. Baer argued that he had introduced Chase to Tony Spirito (a restaurateur and gambler with alleged mob ties) and Thomas Koczur (a homicide detective for the Elizabeth Police Department), with whom Chase had conducted interviews and tours which strongly inspired some characters, settings, and storylines portrayed in The Sopranos.
On December 19, 2007, a federal jury ruled against Baer, dismissing all of his claims.
Like the characters they portray on the show, many of the actors on The Sopranos are Italian American. Many cast members had appeared together in films and television series before joining the cast of The Sopranos. The series shares a total of 27 actors with the 1990 Martin Scorsese gangster film, Goodfellas, including main cast members Lorraine Bracco, Michael Imperioli, and Tony Sirico.
The main cast was put together through a process of auditions and readings. Actors often did not know whether Chase liked their performances or not. Michael Imperioli, who beat out several actors for the part of Christopher Moltisanti, recalls "He's got a poker face, so I thought he wasn't into me, and he kept giving me notes and having me try it again, which often is a sign that you're not doing it right. I thought, I'm not getting this. So he said, 'Thank you,' and I left. I didn't expect to hear back. And then they called." Chase also said he wanted Imperioli because he had been in Goodfellas. James Gandolfini was invited to audition for the part of Tony Soprano after casting director Susan Fitzgerald saw a short clip of his performance in the 1993 film True Romance. Lorraine Bracco, who had played the role of mob wife Karen Hill in Goodfellas, was originally asked to play the role of Carmela Soprano. She took the role of Dr. Jennifer Melfi instead because she wanted to try something different and felt the part of the highly educated Dr. Melfi would be more of a challenge for her. Tony Sirico, who has a criminal background, signed on to play Paulie Walnuts as long as his character was not to be a "rat". Chase invited musician Steven Van Zandt, a guitarist in Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band to audition for a part in his series after seeing him live at the 1997 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ceremony and being impressed with his appearance and presence. Van Zandt, who had never acted before, originally auditioned for the role of Tony Soprano but HBO felt the role should go to an experienced actor. Van Zandt eventually agreed to star on the show as mob consigliere Silvio Dante and his real-life spouse Maureen was cast as his on-screen wife, Gabriella.
With the exception of Oscar nominee Bracco (Goodfellas), Dominic Chianese (The Godfather Part II, along with stage work) and Emmy-winner Nancy Marchand (Lou Grant), the cast of the debut season of the series consisted of largely unknown actors. After the breakthrough success of the show, many cast members were noted for their acting ability and received mainstream attention for their performances. Subsequent seasons saw established actors Joe Pantoliano, Robert Loggia, Steve Buscemi and Frank Vincent join the starring cast, along with well-known actors in recurring roles such as Peter Bogdanovich, John Heard, Robert Patrick, Peter Riegert, Annabella Sciorra, and David Strathairn. Several well-known actors appeared in just one or two episodes, such as Lauren Bacall, Daniel Baldwin, Annette Bening, Polly Bergen, Sandra Bernhard, Charles S. Dutton, Jon Favreau, Janeane Garofalo, Hal Holbrook, Tim Kang, Elias Koteas, Ben Kingsley, Linda Lavin, Ken Leung, Julianna Margulies, Sydney Pollack, Wilmer Valderrama, Alicia Witt and Burt Young.
Series creator and executive producer David Chase served as showrunner and head writer for the production of all six seasons of the show. He was deeply involved with the general production of every episode and is noted for being a very controlling, demanding, and specific producer. He wrote or co-wrote between two and seven episodes per season, and would oversee all the editing, consult with episode directors, give actors character motivation, approve casting choices and set designs, and do extensive but uncredited rewrites of episodes written by others. Brad Grey served as executive producer alongside Chase but had no creative input on the show. Many members of the creative team behind The Sopranos were handpicked by Chase, some being old friends and colleagues of his; others were selected after interviews conducted by producers of the show.
Many of the show's writers worked in television prior to joining the writing staff of The Sopranos. Writing team and married couple Robin Green and Mitchell Burgess worked on the series as writers and producers from the first to the fifth season; they had previously worked with Chase on Northern Exposure. Terence Winter joined the writing staff during the production of the second season and served as executive producer from season five onwards. He practiced law for two years before deciding to pursue a career as a screenwriter, and he caught the attention of Chase through writer Frank Renzulli. Matthew Weiner served as staff writer and producer for the show's fifth and sixth seasons. He wrote a spec script for the series Mad Men in 2000. The script was passed on to Chase, who was so impressed that he immediately offered Weiner a job as a writer for The Sopranos. Cast members Michael Imperioli and Toni Kalem portray Christopher Moltisanti and Angie Bonpensiero respectively, and they also wrote episodes for the show. Imperioli wrote five episodes of seasons two through five, and Kalem wrote one episode of season five.
Other writers included Frank Renzulli, Todd A. Kessler (co-creator of Damages), writing team Diane Frolov and Andrew Schneider (worked with Chase on Northern Exposure), and Lawrence Konner, who co-created Almost Grown with Chase in 1988. In total, 20 writers or writing teams (22 people) are credited with writing episodes of The Sopranos. Of these, Tim Van Patten and Maria Laurino receive a single story credit, and eight others are credited with writing a sole episode. The most prolific writers of the series were Chase (30 credited episodes, including story credits), Winter (25 episodes), Green and Burgess (22 episodes), Weiner (12 episodes), and Renzulli (9 episodes).
Many of the directors had previously worked on television series and independent films. The most frequent directors of the series were Tim Van Patten (20 episodes), John Patterson (13 episodes), Allen Coulter (12 episodes), and Alan Taylor (9 episodes), all of whom have a background in television. Recurring cast members Steve Buscemi and Peter Bogdanovich also directed episodes of the series intermittently. Chase directed the pilot episode and the series finale. Both episodes were photographed by the show's original director of photography Alik Sakharov, who later alternated episodes with Phil Abraham. The show's photography and directing is noted for its feature film quality. This look was achieved by Chase collaborating with Sakharov. "From the pilot, we would sit down with the whole script and break the scenes down into shots. That's what you do with feature films."
The Sopranos is noted for its eclectic music selections and has received considerable critical attention for its effective use of previously recorded songs. Chase personally selected all of the show's music with producer Martin Bruestle and music editor Kathryn Dayak, sometimes also consulting Steven Van Zandt. The music was usually selected once the production and editing of an episode was completed, but on occasion sequences were filmed to match preselected pieces of music.
The show's opening theme is "Woke Up This Morning" (Chosen One Mix), written by, remixed and performed by British band Alabama 3. With few exceptions, a different song plays over the closing credits of each episode. Many songs are repeated multiple times through an episode, such as "Living on a Thin Line" by The Kinks in the season three episode "University" and "Glad Tidings" by Van Morrison in the season five finale "All Due Respect". Other songs are heard several times throughout the series. A notable example is "Con te partirò", performed by Italian singer Andrea Bocelli, which plays several times in relation to the character of Carmela Soprano. While the show utilizes a wealth of previously recorded music, it is also notable for its lack of originally composed incidental music, compared to other television programs.
Two soundtrack albums containing music from the series have been released. The first, titled The Sopranos: Music from the HBO Original Series, was released in 1999. It contains selections from the show's first two seasons and reached #54 on the U.S. Billboard 200. A second soundtrack compilation, titled The Sopranos - Peppers and Eggs: Music From The HBO Series, was released in 2001. This double-disc album contains songs and selected dialogue from the show's first three seasons. It reached #38 on the U.S. Billboard 200.
The majority of the exterior scenes taking place in New Jersey were filmed on location, with the majority of the interior shots—including most indoor shots of the Soprano residence, the back room of the strip club Bada Bing!, and Dr. Melfi's psychiatrist's office—filmed at Silvercup Studios in New York City.
The pork store, a frequent hangout for the mobsters on the show, was in the pilot episode known as Centanni's Meat Market, an actual butchery in Elizabeth, New Jersey. After the series was picked up by HBO, the producers leased a building with a store front in Kearny, New Jersey. For the remainder of the production period, this building served as the shooting location for scenes outside and inside the pork store, now renamed Satriale's. After the series ended, the building was demolished.
Bada Bing!, a strip club owned and operated by the character Silvio Dante on the show, is an actual strip club on Route 17 in Lodi, New Jersey. Exteriors and interiors (except for the back room) were shot on location. The club is called Satin Dolls and was an existing business before the show started. The club continued to operate during the eight years the show was filmed there. As such, a business arrangement was worked out with the owner. Locations manager Mark Kamine recalls that the owner was "very gracious" as long as the shooting did not "conflict with his business time." Scenes set at the restaurant Vesuvio, owned and operated in the series by character Artie Bucco, were in the first episode filmed at a restaurant called Manolo's located in Elizabeth. After the destruction of Vesuvio within the context of the series, Artie opened a new restaurant called Nuovo Vesuvio; exterior scenes set there were filmed at an Italian restaurant called Punta Dura located in Long Island City. All the exterior and some interior shots of the Soprano residence were filmed on location at a private residence in North Caldwell, New Jersey.
Tony Soprano is seen emerging from the Lincoln Tunnel and passes through the tollbooth for the New Jersey Turnpike. Numerous landmarks in and around Newark and Jersey City, New Jersey, are then shown passing by the camera as Tony drives down the highway. The sequence ends with Tony pulling into the driveway of his suburban home. Chase has said that the goal of the title sequence was to show that this particular mafia show was about New Jersey, as opposed to New York, where most similar dramas have been set.
In the first three seasons, between Tony leaving the tunnel and passing through the toll plaza, the show had a shot of the World Trade Center towers in Tony's rear-view mirror. After the September 11, 2001 attacks, this shot was removed and replaced with a more generic shot, beginning with the show's fourth season.
In a 2010 issue of TV Guide, the show’s opening title sequence ranked #10 on a list of TV's top 10 credits sequences, as selected by readers.
The Sopranos features a large cast of characters, many of whom get significant amounts of character development—regardless of level of importance. Some only appear in certain seasons, while others appear (sporadically or constantly) throughout the entire series. All characters were created by David Chase, unless otherwise noted.
Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) is the series' protagonist. Tony is one of the capos (and the unofficial underboss) of the New Jersey-based DiMeo crime family, at the beginning of the series; he eventually becomes its undisputed boss. He is also the patriarch of the Soprano household. Throughout the series, Tony struggles to balance the conflicting requirements of his family—wife Carmela, daughter Meadow, son A. J., and mother Livia—with those of the Mafia family he controls. Because he is prone to bouts of clinical depression, after a fainting spell (triggered by a panic attack), Tony's physician refers him for treatment from psychiatrist Dr. Jennifer Melfi (Lorraine Bracco), in the show's first episode. She treats Tony to the best of her ability despite the fact that they routinely clash over various issues. Melfi is usually thoughtful, rational and humane—a stark contrast to Tony's personality. Tony, a serial womanizer, occasionally divulges his sexual attraction to Dr. Melfi; Melfi harbors some degree of attraction to Tony, too, but never admits or acts on it. Melfi is far more attracted to Tony's dangerousness and power. She is drawn to the challenge of helping such an unusual client, and naively assumes that their doctor-patient relationship will not affect her personal life in any way.
Adding to Tony's complicated life is his relationship with his wife Carmela (Edie Falco), which is strained by his constant infidelity and her struggle to reconcile the reality of Tony's business (which she is often in denial of), with the affluent lifestyle and higher social status it brings her. Both have up-and-down relationships with their two children: the intelligent-but-rebellious Meadow (Jamie-Lynn Sigler), and underachiever A.J. (i.e., Anthony Jr.) (Robert Iler), whose everyday teenage issues are further complicated by their eventual knowledge of their father's criminal activities and reputation.
The starring cast includes members of Tony's extended family, including: his disapproving, manipulative mother, Olivia "'Livia" Soprano (Nancy Marchand); his aimless, histrionic older sister, Janice (Aida Turturro); his paternal uncle Corrado "Junior" Soprano (Dominic Chianese), nominal boss of the crime family following the death of then-acting boss Jackie Aprile Sr.; cousin Tony Blundetto (Steve Buscemi); and Christopher Moltisanti (Michael Imperioli), often referred to as Tony's "nephew" (but is actually his cousin by marriage). Both 'Livia and Janice are scheming, treacherous, shrewd manipulators with major-yet-unaddressed psychological issues of their own. The single-mindedly ambitious Uncle Junior is chronically frustrated by having not been made boss of the DiMeo family, despite old-school mob traditions entitling him to the position by virtue of seniority. He feels his authority is perpetually undermined by Tony's greater influence in the organization, and barely contains his seething jealousy at having to watch both his younger brother (Tony's father) and now Tony, himself, leapfrog him in the organization. As their professional tensions escalate, Uncle Junior employs increasingly desperate, behind-the-scenes measures to solve his problems with Tony, who still idolizes his uncle, and wants to retain Junior's affection and approval. Uncle Junior and Christopher are fixtures in Tony's real family, as well as his crime family, so their actions in one realm often create further conflicts in the other. Christopher, an entitled, insecure DiMeo associate who is as ambitious as he is insubordinate and incompetent, is also a chronic substance abuser. Tony Blundetto is a well-respected DiMeo family soldier who returns after completing a lengthy prison sentence; he leaves prison committed to "going straight" (to Tony's dismay), but also has an intense violent streak.
Those in Tony's closest circle within the DiMeo crime family include Silvio Dante (Steven Van Zandt). Silvio is Tony's consigliere and best friend. He runs the family's strip club headquarters, and other businesses. Paulie "Walnuts" Gualtieri (Tony Sirico), a tough, short-tempered, aging soldier who is fiercely loyal to Tony and Salvatore "Big Pussy" Bonpensiero (Vincent Pastore), a veteran gangster who runs an automotive body shop. Paulie "Walnuts" and "Big Pussy" (often called just, "Pussy") have worked with Tony and his father. Also in Tony's criminal organization are: Patsy Parisi (Dan Grimaldi), and Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio). Patsy is a soft-spoken soldier with a head for figures; Furio, an Italian national who joins the family later in the series, serves as Tony's violent enforcer and bodyguard.
Other significant characters in the DiMeo family include: Bobby "Bacala" Baccalieri (Steven R. Schirripa); Richie Aprile (David Proval); Ralph Cifaretto (Joe Pantoliano); Eugene Pontecorvo (Robert Funaro); and Vito Spatafore (Joseph R. Gannascoli). Bobby is a subordinate of Uncle Junior's whom Tony initially bullies, but later accepts into his inner circle. Ralph is a clever, ambitious top-earner; but his arrogant, obnoxious, disrespectful, and unpredictably violent tendencies turn Tony resentful. Richie Aprile is released from prison in season 2, and quickly makes waves. Pontecorvo is a young soldier who becomes a "made" man alongside Christopher. Spatafore works his way up through the ranks to become top earner of the Aprile crew, but is secretly homosexual.
Friends of the Soprano family include: Herman "Hesh" Rabkin (Jerry Adler); Adriana La Cerva (Drea de Matteo); Rosalie Aprile (Sharon Angela); Angie Bonpensiero (Toni Kalem), along with Artie (John Ventimiglia) and Charmaine Bucco (Kathrine Narducci). Hesh is an invaluable adviser and friend to Tony, as he was when Tony's father ran things. Adriana is Christopher's loyal and long-suffering girlfriend; the two have a volatile relationship, but appear destined to stay together. Christopher often ignores Adriana's advice, and winds up regretting it. Rosalie is the widow of previous DiMeo boss Jackie Aprile Sr., and a very close friend of Carmela. Angie is Salvatore Bonpensiero's wife; she later goes into "business" for herself, and quite successfully. Artie & Charmaine are childhood friends of the Sopranos, and owners of the popular restaurant, Vesuvio. Charmaine wishes to have no association with Tony and his crew due to fears that Tony's criminal ways will ultimately ruin everything she and Artie have achieved. Artie, however—a law-abiding, hard-working man—is drawn to his childhood friend Tony's glamorous, seemingly carefree lifestyle. Charmaine bitterly resents Artie's chronic tendency to disregard her wishes while catering to Tony's; their marriage suffers greatly as a result. Charmaine also had a brief sexual encounter with Tony (when he and Carmela had temporarily broken-up) when all four were teenagers.
John "Johnny Sack" Sacramoni (Vince Curatola), Phil Leotardo (Frank Vincent) and "Little" Carmine Lupertazzi Jr. (Ray Abruzzo) are all significant characters from the New York City-based Lupertazzi crime family, which shares a good amount of its business with the Soprano organization. Although the Lupertazzis' and DiMeos' interests are often at odds, Tony maintains a cordial, business-like relationship with "Johnny Sack", preferring to make mutually beneficial deals, not war. Johnny Sack's second-in-command and eventual successor, Phil Leotardo, is less friendly and harder for Tony to do business with. Little Carmine is the son of the family's first boss, and vies for power with its other members.
When Tony Soprano collapses after suffering a panic attack, he begins therapy with Dr. Jennifer Melfi. Details of Tony's upbringing—with his father's influence looming large on his development as a gangster, but more so that Tony's mother, Livia, was vengeful and possibly psychopathic—are revealed. His complicated relationship with his wife Carmela is also explored, as well as her feelings regarding her husband's cosa nostra ties. Meadow and Anthony Jr.—Tony's children—gain increasing knowledge of their father's mob dealings. Later, federal indictments are brought as a result of someone in his organization talking to the FBI.
Tony's uncle Corrado "Junior" Soprano orders the murder of Brendan Filone and the mock execution of Chris Moltisanti, associates of Tony, as reprisal for repeated hijackings of trucks under Corrado's protection. Tony defuses the situation by allowing his uncle to be installed as boss of the family (following the death of previous boss Jackie Aprile Sr. from cancer), while Tony retains actual control of most things from behind the scenes. Corrado discovers the artifice, however, and orders an attempt on Tony's life. The assassination is nevertheless botched and Tony responds violently, before confronting his mother for her role in plotting his downfall; she appears to have a psychologically-triggered stroke. "Junior" is arrested by the FBI on non-related charges.
Jackie's brother Richie Aprile is released from prison, proving to be uncontrollable in the business arena. He starts a relationship with Janice, Tony's sister, who has arrived from Seattle. "Big Pussy" returns to New Jersey after a conspicuous absence.
Christopher Moltisanti becomes engaged to his girlfriend Adriana La Cerva. Matthew Bevilaqua and Sean Gismonte, two low-level associates dissatisfied with their perceived lack of success in the Soprano crew, try to make a name for themselves by attempting to kill Christopher. Their plan backfires; Christopher kills Sean and, though critically wounded, survives their attack. Tony and Big Pussy locate Matthew and kill him. However, a witness goes to the FBI and identifies Tony.
Junior is placed under house arrest as he awaits trial. Richie, frustrated with Tony's authority over him, entreats Junior to have Tony killed. Junior feigns interest, then informs Tony of Richie's intentions, leaving Tony with another problem to address. However, the situation is defused unexpectedly when Janice kills Richie in a violent argument; Tony and his men conceal all evidence of the murder, and Janice returns to Seattle.
Tony, realizing Big Pussy is an FBI informant, kills him on board a boat (with assistance from Silvio Dante and Paulie Gualtieri), then wraps his corpse in chains and throws it overboard.
Following the "disappearance" of Aprile crew capo Richie Aprile, the return of the ambitious Ralph Cifaretto, having spent an extended period of leisure time in Miami, marks the third season. He renews a relationship with Rosalie Aprile, the widow of the deceased acting boss Jackie Aprile Sr., and former capo of the Aprile crew, which bears his name. With Richie assumed to have joined the Witness Protection Program, Ralph unofficially usurps control over the Aprile crew, proving to be an exceptionally dexterous earner for the crew. While Ralph's competitive merit would seemingly have him next in line to ascend to capo, his insubordination inclines Tony not to promote him and instead gives the promotion to the unqualified, but complacent, Gigi Cestone, causing much resentment and tension between him and Ralph. Livia dies of a stroke.
Jackie Aprile Jr. becomes involved with Meadow and then descends into a downward spiral of recklessness, drugs and crime. Tony initially attempts to act as a mentor to Jackie but becomes increasingly impatient with his escalating misbehavior, particularly as Jackie's relationship with Meadow begins to become serious. Inspired by a story from Ralph about how Tony, Jackie Sr., and Silvio Dante got made, Jackie and his friends Dino Zerilli and Carlo Renzi make a similar move and attempt to rob Eugene Pontecorvo's Saturday night card game, so they can gain recognition from the family, possibly getting them respected and made as well. The plan takes a turn for the worse when Jackie panics due to the heckling of the card dealer "Sunshine" and shoots him to death. Dino and Carlo are killed during the robbery, but Jackie manages to escape. Tony decides to give Ralph the decision regarding Jackie Jr.'s punishment. Despite his role as a surrogate father, Ralph decides to have Jackie Jr. killed.
Ralph ultimately crosses the line when, in a cocaine-induced rage, he gets into a confrontation with girlfriend Tracee and beats her to death. She may have been pregnant with his child at the time. This infuriates Tony to the point where he violates traditional mafia code by striking him repeatedly in front of the entire family. Bad blood temporarily surfaces between the two but is shortly resolved after Cestone suffers a fatal heart attack, thereby forcing Tony to reluctantly promote Ralph to capo.
Tony begins an affair with Gloria Trillo, who is also a patient of Dr. Melfi. Their relationship is brief and tumultuous. Meanwhile, Dr. Melfi is raped. Junior is diagnosed with stomach cancer; following chemotherapy, it goes into remission. A.J. continues to get in trouble at school—despite success on the football team—which culminates in his expulsion.
Tony and Christopher stake out the retirement party of Detective Lieutenant Barry Haydu, the man who murdered Christopher's father. Tony gives Christopher Haydu's address. When Christopher asks why he had been allowed to live all these years, Tony says that he had been valuable, but that he has outlived his worth. Christopher waits inside Haydu's home, ambushes him as he returns from his party, and shoots him.
New York underboss Johnny Sack becomes enraged after learning Ralph Cifaretto made an inappropriate joke about his wife's weight. He seeks permission from boss Carmine Lupertazzi to have Ralph clipped, but is denied. Johnny orders the hit anyway. Tony receives the okay from Carmine to hit Johnny Sack for insubordination. Junior Soprano tips Tony to use an old outfit in Providence for the work. After catching his wife eating sweets secretly, instead of following the diet plan, Johnny Sack gives in, and bloodshed is averted.
Tony and Ralph invest in a race horse named Pie-O-My, who wins several races and makes them both a great deal of money. However, when Ralph's 12-year-old son Justin is severely injured when an arrow plunges into his chest, Tony comes to believe Ralph burned Pie-O-My in a stable fire to collect $200,000 in insurance money. Tony confronts Ralph the following morning and Ralph denies setting the fire. The two engage in a violent brawl, culminating in Tony strangling Ralph to death. Tony and Christopher dispose of the body; they bury his head and hands at Mikey Palmice's father's farm and throw his body into a quarry.
While he is leaving court, Uncle Junior is hit in the head with a boom mic and falls down several steps. Tony advises him to take advantage of the opportunity, act mentally incompetent, and employ it as a ruse for not continuing the trial. Later, Eugene Pontecorvo intimidates a juror, resulting in a deadlocked jury, forcing the judge to declare a mistrial.
Following the death of Bobby Baccalieri's wife, Janice pursues a romantic relationship with him. Christopher's addiction to heroin deepens, prompting his associates and family to organize an intervention, after which he enters a drug rehabilitation center. Adriana befriends a woman who is an undercover FBI agent. When the friendship ends, the woman reveals herself as an FBI agent and tells Adriana the only way to stay out of prison is to become an informant. Adriana agrees and starts sharing information with the FBI.
Carmela, whose relationship with Tony is tense due to financial worries and Tony's infidelities, develops a mutual infatuation with Furio Giunta. Furio, incapable of breaking his own moral codes and that of the Neapolitan mafia, clandestinely returns home to Italy. After Tony's former mistress calls their home, Carmela throws Tony out. Tony is approached by Johnny Sack with a proposal to murder Carmine, which Tony turns down.
A string of new characters are introduced, including Tony's cousin Tony Blundetto, who simultaneously along with other mafiosi, is released from prison. Among the others released are former DiMeo crime family capo Michele "Feech" La Manna, Lupertazzi family capo Phil Leotardo, and semi-retired Lupertazzi consigliere Angelo Garepe. Tony offers Tony B. a job, but he respectfully declines, as he is determined to lead a straight life. He initially begins to take courses to earn a degree in massage therapy and aspires to open up his own massage parlor. After Carmine Lupertazzi dies of a stroke, his death leaves a vacancy for boss of the Lupertazzi family, which will soon be fought over by underboss Johnny Sack and Carmine's son Carmine Lupertazzi Jr. After Feech proves to be an insubordinate presence, Tony arranges for him to be sent back to prison by setting him up with stolen property, violating his parole.
The war between Johnny Sack and Carmine Jr. begins when Johnny has Phil kill "lady shylock" Lorraine Calluzzo. Tony B.'s attempt to stay straight comes to a head when he gets into a brawl with his employer Sungyon Kim. Tony informs Tony B. that "it's hard working with strangers." Angelo, who was a good friend to Tony B. in prison, and Lupertazzi capo Rusty Millio offer Tony B. the job of taking out Joey Peeps in retaliation for Lorraine's death. Tony B. initially declines but, desperate to earn, accepts the job. He catches Joey outside a bordello, shoots him, and quickly flees the scene. Johnny believes Tony B. is involved, and retaliates by having Phil and his brother Billy Leotardo kill Angelo. Tony B. finds the Leotardo brothers and opens fire, killing Billy and wounding Phil.
Still separated from Carmela, Tony is living at his parents' house. Carmela, now the sole authority figure in the home, becomes frustrated as her rules lead A.J. to resent her; eventually she allows him to live with his father. She has a brief relationship with Robert Wegler, A.J.'s guidance counselor; he breaks it off abruptly when he suspects that she is manipulating him to improve A.J.'s grades. Tony and Carmela reconcile; Tony promises to be more loyal and agrees to pay for a piece of real estate Carmela wishes to develop.
Tony gets Meadow's boyfriend Finn De Trolio a summer job at a construction site, which is run by Aprile crew capo Vito Spatafore. Finn comes in early one morning and catches Vito performing fellatio on a security guard. Vito tries to buddy up to Finn so that he does not say anything to anybody else. He even asks Finn to a Yankees game, which Finn does not attend. Finn soon quits the job out of fear.
After covering up a murder that occurred at The Crazy Horse, Adriana is arrested and pressured by the FBI to wear a wire to avoid being charged as an accomplice. She refuses to wear a wire and informs the FBI that she may be able to persuade her fiancé Christopher to co-operate and become an informant against Tony. She confesses to Christopher that she has been informing and that the FBI would give them new identities if they would testify. Christopher is grief-stricken and nearly kills her. He leaves the apartment, saying he needs time to think. Tony has Silvio pick up Adriana under the pretense of taking her to see Christopher, but instead drives her out to the woods and executes her. Adriana’s betrayal and subsequent execution is too much for Christopher to handle and he briefly returns to drug abuse to deal with the pain.
Phil Leotardo and his henchmen beat Benny Fazio while trying to acquire the whereabouts of Tony B.; Phil also threatens to have Christopher taken out if Tony B.'s whereabouts are not disclosed soon. To avoid any more of his guys getting hurt and to pacify New York, Tony tracks Tony B. to their Uncle Pat's farm and shoots him. Phil, however, is furious that he did not get the opportunity to do it himself. Tony and Johnny meet at Johnny's house in a reconciliatory manner, but Johnny is arrested by Federal agents, while Tony escapes.
A senile and confused Uncle Junior shoots Tony. Rendered comatose, Tony dreams he is a salesman on a business trip who mistakenly exchanges his briefcase and identification with a man named Kevin Finnerty. Tony's recovery from the shooting changes his outlook and he tries to mend his ways. However, he is faced with more problems in his business life.
Once out of the hospital, Johnny Sack's daughter gets married and the Soprano family attends. There, Tony is shown very exhausted when taking off his shoes through security. In the process, he collapses to the floor but is not hurt. Before the wedding, Johnny Sack is approved to leave prison for six hours to see his daughter get married, but has to pay for the metal detectors and the presence of the U.S. marshals at the event. As his daughter is about to drive away, the SUV that was escorting Johnny to the wedding blocks the car from leaving and an altercation begins in the driveway. In a moment of weakness and despair, Johnny Sack cries as he is put back into handcuffs and driven back to prison, greatly diminishing the respect his crew and Tony's crew have for him.
Vito Spatafore is outed as gay after running into a friend at a New York gay night club. The rumor spreads quickly, and once word gets to Meadow that everyone else knows, she tells Tony and Carmela about the incident between Finn and Vito with the security guard. Finn then has to sit in front of Tony's entire crew and tell them what happened with the guard, solidifying their thoughts on Vito's sexuality. Tony is urged to deal with the problem by Phil Leotardo, now acting boss of New York with Johnny Sack in prison. Once Vito is outed, he runs away from the city and hides out in a New Hampshire town where he claims to be writing a book and meets with the locals. Vito also starts a romantic relationship with a male cook at a local diner. Eventually, Vito returns to New Jersey and asks Tony to allow him to return to work, albeit in Atlantic City. He continues to maintain that he is not a homosexual. Tony mulls over the decision to let him work, as well as whether to let him live. When Tony fails to act, Phil intervenes and kills Spatafore. When one of the members of the New York family, Fat Dom Gamiello, pays a visit to the Jersey office and won't stop making jokes about Vito and his death, Silvio and Carlo kill Fat Dom out of anger at the disrespect he has shown. Once more, it appears that the families are on the verge of all-out war.
During the first half of the season Chris and Carmine head to Los Angeles to try to sign Ben Kingsley for a film they are trying to make called Cleaver, which is basically a mix of The Godfather and Saw. But Kingsley passes on the picture. While in Los Angeles Chris goes back to using cocaine for a short period of time.
Tony considers killing several of his associates for relatively minor infractions. Christopher is unable to leave the mob, deflecting his problems by relapsing into drug addiction and kills his friend from Narcotics Anonymous, J. T. Dolan. He is then seriously injured in a car accident while driving under the influence of narcotics. Tony, the sole passenger, is not badly hurt, and suffocates Christopher to death. A.J. is dumped by his fiancée and slips into depression, culminating in a suicide attempt in the backyard pool. Dr. Melfi is convinced by friends that Tony is making no progress and may even be using talking therapy for his own sociopathic benefit. She drops him as a patient.
Johnny Sack dies from lung cancer while imprisoned, and Leotardo then consolidates his position in the Lupertazzi family by having his rivals for the leadership killed. Phil then officially takes over, igniting a resumption of the past feud with Tony and refusing to compromise with Tony on a garbage deal. When Tony assaults a Lupertazzi soldier for harassing Meadow while she is on a date, Phil decides it's time to decapitate the Soprano crew. He orders the executions of Bobby Baccalieri, who is shot to death; Silvio, who ends up comatose; and Tony, who goes into hiding. A deal is brokered whereby the rest of the Lupertazzi family agrees to ignore the order to kill Tony, giving Tony an opportunity to go after Phil. An FBI agent informs Tony of Phil's location, allowing Tony to have him killed. Tony suspects that Carlo, a capo from New Jersey, has become an informant in an attempt to help out his son, who has recently been caught for dealing ecstasy. Tony meets his lawyer, who informs him that subpoenas are being given to New Jersey and New York crews alike.
Tony, arriving first, and while waiting for Carmela, and AJ to meet for dinner, the Little Feat song "All That You Dream" plays in the background on the jukebox, Tony keys into the juke box the Journey song "Don't Stop Believin'" and it begins to play. The camera cuts away from the Soprano family and presents vignettes of other diners. As the tension increases, Meadow is shown struggling with parking then crossing the street to the restaurant. A man, who had been previously shown at the counter specifically taking notice of Tony, is shown entering the restroom, the door of which is directly facing and approximately 90 degrees to the table at which Tony and his family are sitting. As Meadow walks up to the door, the screen goes to Tony. The diner door opens with a bell ringing, Tony looks up and the show smash cuts to black and after a few seconds the credits roll in silence.
Chase's decision to end the last episode abruptly with just a black screen was controversial. While Chase has insisted that it was not his intention to stir controversy, the ambiguity over the ending and question of whether Tony was murdered has continued for years after the finale's original broadcast and has spawned numerous websites devoted to finding out his true intention.