‘The Sopranos’: David Chase Explains Why Fan Reactions to the Ending ‘Bothered’ Him

One thing that has helped The Sopranos stay in pop culture is the controversial ending. The last scene was cut at a time that left many people confused and frustrated. David Chase revealed what bothered him about the fan reaction to it and more.

‘The Sopranos’ ending got a lot of attention

The Sopranos changed television in many ways. So there was a lot of pressure for the show to nail the ending.

Mob boss Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) has been the cause of a lot of violence, and fans figured if he died, it would be just as violent. But the show’s ending gave them something else.

Tony was meeting with his family at a little restaurant in the last scene. Right when his daughter, Meadow (Jamie-Lynn Sigler), is about to walk in, we hear someone enter the restaurant. Tony looks up, and the scene cuts to black.

This had people wondering did someone shoot Tony? Does Tony live and see someone else? Some fans felt cheated out of a final scene they expected.

David Chase explains why fan teactions to the ending ‘bothered’ him

The show’s creator has been fielding questions about The Sopranos ending for years. He finally explained it and revealed how he felt about the fan reaction to it.

Chase first talked about an alternate ending. “I had a scene in which Tony comes back from a meeting in New York in his car,” he told The Hollywood Reporter. “At the beginning of every show, he came from New York into New Jersey, and the last scene could be him coming from New Jersey back into New York for a meeting at which he was going to be killed.”

But then he saw a little restaurant and decided Tony would die in a place like that. The creator was asked about his reaction to the fans and the finale. “Yeah, nobody said anything about the episode. No, it was all about the ending,” he noted.

He explained why a brutal murder scene with Tony bothers him. “They wanted to see him go face-down in linguini, you know?” he added. “And I just thought, ‘God, you watched this guy for seven years, and I know he’s a criminal. But don’t tell me you don’t love him in some way, don’t tell me you’re not on his side in some way. And now you want to see him killed? You want justice done? You’re a criminal after watching this sh*t for seven years.’ That bothered me, yeah.”

Now fans know for sure that Tony didn’t survive his meal. Chase just didn’t want to show the complicated main character die on screen.