Sopranos Prequel Series (HBO Max)

[imsounoriginal]

Deadline: ‘The Sopranos’: WarnerMedia In Talks With David Chase About HBO Max Prequel Series

David Chase has talked up the possibility of returning to The Sopranos universe with a sequel to The Many Saints of Newark.

The creator of the hit James Gandolfini-fronted mob drama suggested, in an interview with Deadline, that it could be another feature film with Chase and Terence Winter writing together.

Now, it’s emerged that it could possibly even end up as a TV series for HBO Max.

Ann Sarnoff, CEO, Studios and Networks, WarnerMedia, told Deadline that the company was “thrilled” with the results of The Many Saints of Newark.

“We’re talking to David about a new series, Sopranos related, on HBO Max,” she said.

Chase said that if he was to return to The Sopranos world, any such potential story would take place after the film, which is set in the late 1960s and 1970s and before the original series, which starts around 1998. “There’s only one way that I would do it, and that was if Terry [Winter] and I could write the script together. That I would do.”

Sarnoff admitted that a final decision as to whether the project becomes a series or a feature film has not been made, but a Sopranos prequel series is an intriguing possibility.

She conceded that the box office numbers for The Many Saints of Newark, which stars Alessandro Nivola as Dickie Moltisanti and James Gandolfini’s son Michael Gandolfini as a young Tony Soprano, were not quite as big as the company would have liked, but pointed to the demographics of the people returning to movie theaters as one reason. She added that the film had a positive effect on the show, which launched on HBO in 1999.

“You see The Sopranos pop into the top ten of viewed series on the service and it’s given it an entirely new life,” she said. “It’s literally lifted all of The Sopranos franchise in a new way. You can’t measure just by the box office.”

Sarnoff’s comments come after Chase signed a five-year, first-look deal with WarnerMedia that covers film and TV across HBO, HBO Max and Warner Bros. Pictures Group.

Chase previously wrote and developed A Ribbon of Dreams, a six-part miniseries for HBO that told the story of the beginnings of Hollywood, following a college-educated mechanical engineer and a cowboy with a violent past, who form an unlikely producing partnership and together become pioneers and then powers for a time in motion pictures. He said that it was all lined up but HBO wanted him to shoot in Ontatio and “there was a problem with money” so Chase and the premium cable network parted ways on it.

“The thing I wrote for HBO was, it would’ve been pretty good. I may go back to that,” Chase told Deadline.

[Hoke Moseley]

After how much of a dud the prequel film was, fingers crossed that this never happens.

The Hollywood miniseries sounds so much more interesting.

[ps3bd_owner]

I love The Sopranos and I definitely want to see more of James Gadolfini's son, but I reckon this won't be nearly as good as The Sopranos. It's hard to top that.

I watched 3x11 yesterday and it was a blast. Easily one of the best episodes of the show and hilarious.

[El Rey]

after seeing The Many Saints of Newark, thanks but no thanks

[vertigop1ayer]

If it's great I'm sure we'll hear about it, but The Soporanos covered as much as I really felt was needed. Shows like The Soporanos, Breaking Bad, or Mad Men explore the main characters so thoroughly and effectively that direct prequel or sequel content seems superfluous. A better idea would be a spin-off like Better Call Saul was for Breaking Bad or Frasier for Cheers.

I'm going to speculate that the financial performance and audience reception will cause them to second guess this, if nothing else. Now that I've written it in digital stone I'll be proven wrong.

[drb999]

Many Saints needed room to breathe. Too much happening with not much tying it together. It should’ve been a series not a film.

[TsMkLg068426]

Just stop milking the COW the series finale was terrible and the prequel was even bigger crap. HBO Max spend your money on getting the rights back for Tales from the Crypt series.

[ps3bd_owner]

Originally Posted by TsMkLg068426

Just stop milking the COW the series finale was terrible and the prequel was even bigger crap. HBO Max spend your money on getting the rights back for Tales from the Crypt series.

You thought that? Fair enough.

The cut to black was worse than seeing Tony get murdered in front of his family. I really liked his character even though he definitely deserved that, tragic about his kids and wife being there plus everyone else being witness to it.

[phobicsquirrel]

Originally Posted by TsMkLg068426

Just stop milking the COW the series finale was terrible and the prequel was even bigger crap. HBO Max spend your money on finishing the snyder verse!.

Yep and...

I fixed it for ya!

[phobicsquirrel]

Originally Posted by ps3bd_owner

You thought that? Fair enough.

The cut to black was worse than seeing Tony get murdered in front of his family. I really liked his character even though he definitely deserved that, tragic about his kids and wife being there plus everyone else being witness to it.

Was he going to get shot though? Unless I'm missing something chase never said that.... If so then cutting to black was even dumber because I thought they were just being paranoid and stirring up tension.

[avs commenter]

I'm kinda interested, but also convinced David Chase don't have it anymore.

[imsounoriginal]

As apparently one of the few who liked the movie, I'm all for this. If the main complaint with Many Saints of Newark was that there was too much material for only a movie, then it sounds like Chase/HBO are actually listening to the criticism by taking Chase's other ideas for potential movies and fleshing them out into a series. Obviously HBO gets more content and Chase probably gets more money this way, but I'll be optimistic. Would be great if the movie cast could reprise their roles where appropriate.

[Joeker]

Im there for it. I enjoyed Saints if Newark and there is definitely more to that world leading up to The Sopranos.

We’ll get to see Tony be a made man and getting his crew