Gandolfini performed in a 1992 Broadway production of A Streetcar Named Desire as Steve Hubbell

for 168 performances, and in a 1995 Broadway production of On the Waterfront as Charley Malloy
for 24. One of his earlier film roles was that of Virgil, a brutal mob enforcer, in the romantic
thriller True Romance (1993), for which he said one of his major inspirations was an old friend of his
who was a hitman.[15] In the film Terminal Velocity (1994), Gandolfini played Ben Pinkwater, a
seemingly mild-mannered insurance man who turns out to be a violent Russian mobster. In 1995 he
was in the box office hit Crimson Tide. In that same year in Get Shorty (1995), he appeared as a
bearded ex-stuntman with a Southern accent, and in The Juror (1996), he played a mob enforcer
with a conscience.[3]
Gandolfini received widespread acclaim for his performance as Tony Soprano, the lead character in
the HBO drama The Sopranos, a New Jersey mob boss and family man whose constant existential
questioning includes regular psychiatric appointments. The show debuted in 1999 and was
broadcast until 2007. For his depiction of Soprano, Gandolfini won three Emmys for "Best Actor in a
Drama" and Entertainment Weekly listed him as the 42nd Greatest TV Icon of All Time.[16] In addition
to the awards that he won, Gandolfini received numerous nominations and two SAG Awards for
being a member of the series' ensemble.[17]. By the final season in 2007, Gandolfini was making one
million dollars per episode. [18]
In 2007, Gandolfini produced a documentary with HBO focused on injured Iraq War veterans and
their devotion to America while surveying the physical and emotional costs of war. Gandolfini
interviewed ten surviving soldiers, who revealed their thoughts about the challenges they face
reintegrating into society and family life. They also reflected on their memories of the day when they
narrowly escaped death and what life may have been like in other circumstances.[citation needed]
That same year, Gandolfini returned to HBO as the executive producer of the Emmy-nominated
documentary special, Alive Day Memories: Home From Iraq, his first project after The Sopranos and
the first production for his company Attaboy Films, which was opened in 2006 with producing partner
Alexandra Ryan. He returned to the stage in 2009, appearing in Broadway's God of
Carnage with Marcia Gay Harden, Hope Davis, and Jeff Daniels. He received a Tony
Award nomination in the category of Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Play for his role in
the play, but lost to Geoffrey Rush, who played the lead in Exit the King. He played the Mayor of
New York in the 2009 remake of The Taking of Pelham 123.
In 2010 Gandolfini produced another documentary with HBO, which analyzed the effects
of posttraumatic stress disorder throughout American history, from 1861 to 2010. It featured
interviews with American military officials on their views of PTSD and how they are trying to help
soldiers affected by it. Letters from soldiers of the American Civil War and World War I who were
affected by PTSD are examined, along with interviews with soldiers affected by PTSD and their
families.[citation needed]
Gandolfini was executive producer of the HBO film about Ernest Hemingway and his relationship
with Martha Gellhorn, titled Hemingway & Gellhorn (2012).[19] Gandolfini reunited with The
Sopranos creator David Chase for Not Fade Away (2012), a music-driven production set in 1960s
New Jersey, and the latter's feature film debut.[20][21]
Two films which he completed before his death on June 19, 2013, were released posthumously. The
first was Enough Said, a romantic comedy which he co-starred with Julia Louis-Dreyfus. The film
was met with positive reviews, particularly for Gandolfini's performance.[22] He received posthumous
Best Supporting Actor awards from the Boston Society of Film Critics and the Chicago Film Critics
Association as well as multiple nominations, including a nomination for the Screen Actors Guild
Award for Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor in a Supporting Role.
His final film performance was in The Drop, a crime drama in which he co-starred with Tom
Hardy and Noomi Rapace. Released September 12, 2014, the film was met with positive reviews for
Gandolfini's performance.[23]
Gandolfini is credited as an executive producer on the HBO miniseries The Night Of which
premiered in 2016. Gandolfini was set to star in the miniseries when it was pitched to HBO in 2013,
but they ultimately decided not to go ahead with the show. HBO reversed their decision a few
months later, and the show was green-lit, with Gandolfini still set to star, however he died before
filming began. Actor John Turturro assumed the role intended for Gandolfini.