Alec Baldwin reveals the Sopranos role that got away

The Sopranos sequel — (Image credit: HBO)

Everyone who has watched The Sopranos loves The Sopranos. There's a reason, after all, that it tops our list of the best TV shows of all time. One famous fan of the gangster show is Alec Baldwin – and, it turns out, the actor lobbied the HBO show's creators to play the man who would kill Tony Soprano.

Appearing on Talking Sopranos podcast with hosts Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa – who played Chris Soprano and Bobby Baccalieri on the show – Baldwin revealed his failed attempt to appear on The Sopranos.

"I called up whoever it was, I forget, and I said, 'Tell them, when it's time to kill Jimmy [Gandolfini, who played Tony], tell them – this was early, before you get to the end – there's only one man in this business who should come in, whack Jimmy, and ride off with Edie [Falco, who played Tony's wife, Carmela], and I am that man,'" Baldwin recalled.

"I am the guy who needs to blow Jimmy away and take Edie, who I'm madly in love with, away. And they were like, 'Sure, great, we'll add your name to the list of all the Irish actors who think that they should be on The Sopranos."

Baldwin never did get the call to appear on the show, perhaps because *spoilers* Tony doesn't get whacked in quite such an obvious way. In fact, whether Tony dies at all is up for debate, as the Sopranos ending is particularly ambiguous, with some fans hating the infamous cut-to-black midway through Journey's "Don't Stop Believin'" while others are in agreement that, yes, Tony is dead.

Baldwin went on to discuss the first time he met David Chase: "I go into the bathroom of this super chic restaurant, take my jacket off, take my shirt off. I'm mopping the sweat up off my body, and I'm holding my shirt up to the mechanical dryer. And the door opens – and it's David Chase. This is my introduction to David Chase. And he goes, 'Alec Baldwin? What the fuck are you doing drying your shirt in the bathroom at the Four Seasons restaurant?' And I think based on that alone, I was never cast on your show. Ever."

Meanwhile, The Sopranos continues with the prequel the Many Saints of Newark, which is one of the most exciting upcoming movies coming later this year.

Jack Shepherd is the former Senior Entertainment Editor of GamesRadar. Jack used to work at The Independent as a general culture writer before specializing in TV and film for the likes of GR+, Total Film, SFX, and others. You can now find Jack working as a freelance journalist and editor.