The Sopranos prequel film, The Many Saints of Newark, may have landed its first star. Actor Alessandro Nivola has reportedly been cast as Dickey Moltisanti, according to Variety. In the original series, Moltisanti was the late father of Michael Imperioli’s character Christopher Moltisanti, a one-time rising star in the New Jersey crime family.
Tony Soprano (the late James Gandolfini) often referred to Dickey Moltisanti as his mentor. While he was killed long before the events of the series, both Tony and his Uncle Junior (Dominic Chianese) speak of the elder Moltisanti with great reverence, crediting him as one of the guys who took their crime family from small-time hustlers to a respectable outfit.
Long-time Sopranos alum Alan Taylor will be directing the 60s-set The Many Saints of Newark, which was written by original creator David Chase along with Lawrence Konner. Chase will also be serving as producer. Though the original series often employed flashbacks to this particular era in Newark history, it’s unknown if any of the actors who portrayed younger versions of Soprano wiseguys will be reprising their roles for the film.
Nivola, meanwhile, was recently nominated by the British Independent Film Awards for Best Supporting Actor in Sebastian Lelio’s Disobedience and will star opposite Jesse Eisenberg in the martial arts satire The Art of Self Defense, which is due out this coming spring.
