EXCLUSIVE: Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa, who signed on to do the popular Talking Sopranos podcast on a lark, have just signed a big deal with the HarperCollins book imprint William Morrow to write an oral history of the iconic HBO show. They’ll provide insights, behind-the-scenes stories, and little-known facts from cast and crew that could only come from those on the inside.
Imperioli played Christopher Moltisanti and Schirripa, Bobby “Bacala” Baccalieri, two soldiers under Tony Soprano, played by the late great James Gandolfini in the David Chase-created series. They’ve been dissecting each episode on their podcast since April, and Talking Sopranos has proven a tonic for the pandemic and grown to over 5 million downloads. While they told Deadline they hadn’t really watched episodes since filming them until they began the podcast, they are now steeped in Sopranos lore and know where the bodies are buried.
Mauro DiPreta, SVP and Executive Editor at William Morrow, who negotiated the deal with Michael Harriot at Folio Literary Management, said: “Michael and Steve are a dream combination for providing an inside look at The Sopranos, which critics have hailed as one of the greatest TV shows in history,” says DiPreta . “You couldn’t ask for better guides with better access to all of the key players and unknown stories. The book will stand as the definitive companion to the iconic series.”
Imperioli can be seen in the Regina King-directed fall fest favorite One Night In Miami, and he contributed a short story for the Lee Child-edited anthology The Nicotine Chronicles which came out through Akashic Books this week; Schirripa has been busy co-starring in the CBS drama series Blue Bloods.
The long tail of The Sopranos continues to wag, next with The Many Saints of Newark, a prequel that Chase wrote with Lawrence Konner and which Sopranos vet Alan Taylor directed which is now slated to be released by New Line on March 12, 2021, The film traces the origins of the crime family, focusing on the exploits of Richard “Dickie” Moltisanti, the father of the character played by Imperioli in the series. In the movie, Alessandro Nivola plays Moltisanti, and Gandolfini’s son Michael Gandolfini plays the young Tony Soprano.