Watch Unearthed Footage of James Gandolfini Reprising Tony Soprano to Lure LeBron James to the Knicks | Video
“The Sopranos” ended in 2007, but James Gandolfini reprised his Emmy-winning role of Tony Soprano in 2010 for the sole purpose of recruiting LeBron James to the New York Knicks.
Edie Falco, who played Carmela Soprano on the HBO series, first mentioned the promo video in an Atlantic podcast in 2021. But on Tuesday, sportswriter Pablo Torre finally shared footage from the never-before-seen clip on his YouTube show “Pablo Torre Finds Out.”
The pitch — included in Torre’s new “We Found the Secret Tape” video — begins with Carmela telling Tony that “life is so much better now” that they finally moved to New York.
“Yeah life is good here now,” Tony says. “Even if we are in the witness protection program.”
“Now we just have to find a place for your friend LeBron to live,” Carmela replies. The two then discuss what neighborhood would be right for the superstar athlete, whose contract with the Cleveland Cavaliers was due to expire in 2010.
It’s not clear if James ever saw the clip, but he chose to sign with the Miami Heat instead of moving to the Big Apple.
“I couldn’t believe that it didn’t work,” Falco reportedly told the Atlantic in 2021, per Variety. “Not so much because of ‘The Sopranos.’ I just thought, it’s New York. How does anyone say no to New York, for God’s sake? But he did!”
She further admitted to being “shocked” that Gandolfini would agree to play the iconic character again. “We got those requests all the time back then and Gandolfini, he did nothing. And somehow, he agreed to this thing, which I was shocked by. I thought it was a prank when someone said he’s going to do it… [and then] there he was, dressed as Tony. He must have been a bigger basketball fan than I realized.”
“The Sopranos” debuted on Jan. 10, 1999 — 25 years ago — on HBO and quickly became a pop culture phenomenon. Gandolfini passed away in Rome in 2013 while on vacation.
Meanwhile, James has been a power forward for the Los Angeles Lakers since 2018.
Watch the Sopranos pitch in the first segment in the video, above.
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