The Sopranos creator David Chase clarifies what he meant by Tony ‘death scene’ comment

Fans think he accidentally confirmed what happened in the final scene

David Chase has clarified an answer he previously gave that seemingly revealed Tony Soprano’s fate.

The Sopranos ended in 2007 with a finale that continues to be meticulously analysed to this day. It depicts a seemingly ordinary restaurant scene between Tony and his family, which ends with the screen cutting abruptly to black.

Following the finale’s broadcast, many assumed this ending symbolised the show’s protagonist getting whacked.

While being interviewed for The Sopranos Sessions, a book celebrating the HBO series, creator Chase referred to the moment as a “death scene”.

When co-author Matt Zoller Seitz said: “You realise, of course, that you just referred to that as a death scene,” Chase replied: “F*** you guys.”

Chase was asked about this exchange in a new interview with The Hollywood Reporter, where he explained why his choice of words hadn’t been a “slip of the tongue”.

“Because the scene I had in my mind was not that scene,” he told the outlet. “Nor did I think of cutting to black.”

Chase continued: “I had a scene in which Tony comes back from a meeting in New York in his car. 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.”

James Gandolfini in the final scene of ‘The Sopranos’ (HBO)

Elsewhere in The Sopranos Sessions, Chase told Zoller Seitz and Alan Sepinwall: “[The point was] that he could have been whacked in the diner. We all could be whacked in a diner. That was the point of the scene.”

Find a ranking of the 20 best Sopranos moments here.