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Kelly Rissman
US News Reporter
The Sopranos creator David Chase has addressed the reason why Martin Scorsese didn’t like the show.
Chase is the subject of a new two-part documentary directed by Alex Gibney, which shows the writer and director reflecting on the series by sharing insights into its creation, casting and classic scenes.
As well as highlighting the season three scene that might have finally explained the truth behind the show’s divisive ending, Chase disclosed that filmmaker Scorsese is not a fan of the show – despite the fact it featured numerous references to his 1990 gangster film Goodfellas.
In the first episode of the series, which will air on HBO on Saturday (7 September), Chase talked about filming the show in New Jersey, which he said was crucial to the show’s success.
“I forbade any exteriors to be shot in anyplace but New Jersey because I wanted to it to be realistic. I knew New Jersey really well. For example, in [season one episode] “Meadowlands”, the combination of really heavy industry and the largest urban wilderness in the world.”
However, it’s because of this that Chase claimed Scorsese wasn’t a fan of The Sopranos. He told Gibney: “Marty Scorsese doesn’t like the show. He said, ‘I don’t get it – it’s like all these trees and s***.”
Elaborating upon why Scorsese might have felt this, Chase said that The Sopranos went against the grain of what projects focused on gangsters had been up until that point.
“A lot of mob things before that have been in Manhattan or Brooklyn, Chase said, adding: “And I knew there was a mob presence in New Jersey – kids whose fathers were heavy bookmakers, loan sharks.” He said in the town he grew up in, “Some guy got blown up in his garage”.
In 2019, Scorsese, who grew up in Little Italy, Manhattan, shared his disdain for The Sopranos, telling Sight & Sound: “I think I only saw one episode... because I can’t identify with that generation of the underworld. They live in New Jersey with the big houses? I don’t get it.
“They use language – four-letter words – in front of their daughters, at the dinner table? I don’t get that. I just didn’t grow up that way.”
Wise Guy: David Chase and The Sopranos airs on HBO on 7 September.
