Vera Farmiga on ‘Sopranos’ Prequel Film ‘The Many Saints of Newark’

‘The Many Saints of Newark’ star Vera Farmiga talks about climbing inside the mind of Livia Soprano, bonding with Michael Gandolfini, and more

September 6, 2021

Two decades ago, a twentysomething Vera Farmiga auditioned for a role on The Sopranos. She didn’t watch the show at the time, because she couldn’t afford cable and also liked to spend her Sunday nights studying lines for Monday morning’s auditions. She was aware of the importance of the series and was good friends with Sheila Jaffe and Georgianne Walkingen, its casting directors. They brought her in during the groundbreaking HBO Mob drama’s fourth season to read for the role of Valentina La Paz, the wiseguy Ralphie Cifaretto’s mistress, who would eventually be seduced away by Tony Soprano himself.

She was not offered the role.

“I remember it being very quiet in the room,” says Farmiga, “and I remember [Sopranos creator] David Chase just staring at me. I didn’t know if I killed it or they were lukewarm. I couldn’t discern it. Obviously, I didn’t kill it. It just wasn’t my time. Or maybe I sucked, I don’t know! God, even then it was regarded as the best TV show. Getting the role, Jesus, that would have been something.”

Things would work out OK for Farmiga. At 48, she is well-established as one of the best and most versatile actors working today, from her Oscar-nominated breakout role in Up in the Air through her job as one of the stars of the Conjuring horror mega-franchise. And now, the Jersey native has finally gotten a chance to join the Sopranos family in a very different capacity: In the prequel film The Many Saints of Newark, she plays the middle-aged version of Tony’s controlling mother, Livia, who was famously brought to life in the series by Nancy Marchand.

“It’s particularly chuckle-worthy that eventually I got young Livia instead,” Farmiga observes. “His mom! Totally different kind of affair!”

Farmiga spoke with Rolling Stone from Toronto — where she’s filming the Apple TV+ miniseries Five Days at Memorial — about her Sopranos education, what her pandemic year was like, and her penchant for playing monstrous onscreen moms.

David Chase is sometimes difficult to understand. Did working with him on Many Saints give you any more insight into how he may have been responding to you in that original audition?
He’s no longer inscrutable for me. He’s actually very candid and warm and trusting and honest and open. The role was offered to me pending a personal meeting with David and [director] Alan Taylor. Knowing the legacy of the show, it was a flattery that David offered me the role. I believed that I could handle it. Even though he was at the dentist, we met up at an Upper East Side restaurant to share a wonderful bottle of white wine with lots of dessert.

And you hadn’t watched the show at that point?
I didn’t watch the entire series until after my meeting with David. I divulged that [to him]. What I did see was a YouTube compilation featuring scenes from Nancy Marchand. It’s epic! Nancy Marchand is an amazing person! We discussed Nancy Marchand’s greatness, our families, and my Irvington (New Jersey) upbringing. We instantly connected. He is so sweet. Maybe it’s our personalities. Maybe it’s the fact that, subconsciously, I am playing his mother, so there’s an automatic trust there. I just found him adorable and shared this kinetic energy with him.

David isn’t for everyone. It was a great idea for you to change your appearance for the role.
I asked if I could tweak my face with minimal prosthetics to honor the incredible, beautiful, angular bone structure that supported Livia’s angular, aggressive, sharp traits. Livia is a character who has very few curves and many sharp angles.

It’s not insignificant that he would ask you to play this character so closely based on his mother.
Yes, God. And how that echoes with Michael and James [Gandolfini]. … It’s just so profound on so many levels. I was immediately informed by him that Michael Gandolfini has signed the contract to portray Tony Soprano. That was a complete assurance to me. My heart burst into tears when I realized what an amazing career opportunity this was. But, knowing that it might be part of his ongoing grieving process, I felt a sense of relief. It was my desire to be there for him. It was more like a calling.

What was the first time you met Michael?
The second I got home [from lunch with David], Michael emailed me. It was the most adorable thing: “Ms. Farmiga, I’m a big fan. I can’t wait to learn from you. I would love an opportunity to have some coffee so I would have a familiar face on set.” I just fell absolutely head-over-heels for him. And next thing you know, he knocked on the door of my Upper West Side apartment, and I go [in a perfect Nancy Marchand voice], “Who’s there?” Just like she does in her first scene on the show. He was the only one who could play the part. I don’t know how we could have done it without him.

How did your preparation for the role go?
I went back to the YouTube video. It was a series I watched hundreds of times. I then sped through it. At first, I just did the first three seasons, and I would go, “Shit! Shit!” There’s one part of me that is obviously feeling such respect for this role, and the fun [Nancy] was having, and the brilliance of the writing. This part of me was thrilled and honored. And there was a part of me that had a little bit of buyer’s remorse: “What have you taken on?? Oh, my God! God, the balls!” You don’t want to tarnish the legend. It’s a massive pressure. But the bottom line is, look, we’re all here to have fun. We’re trying to do it justice.

What guidance did David offer you?
David only required that he focus on turning the clock back to Livia. Nancy’s Livia was tough. In her seventies she was a bitter woman. David wanted me to go back to her pre-menopause and pre-dementia. Even though my narcissism remains, he wanted me to inject Livia with more energy and youthfulness. I think that’s when my subscription to Quora Digest started. I just started focusing on Q&A’s and other writing about borderline personality disorders, sociopathy, and narcissism.

What were some aspects of Livia that you could really explore and make your character your own?
Livia’s relationship with Johnny. Her love for her late husband was evident in her willingness to visit his grave on the show. Her infamous “Johnny was a real man, he was a saint!” — the contradiction of that [with] Tony saying she ground [Johnny] to a nub. She speaks highly of her husband and scolds him constantly when he is alive. Jonny Bernthal, I and others tried to solve the marital question: Who is the one who wears the pants? I wonder if they were in love at one time. These things are what cause their marriage to fall apart. Johnny and Livia are a wonderful symphony. Jonny Bernthal is my favorite. To me, he is like freshly cut grass. A dose of chlorophyll. Next time, he and I will need to do more. I hope there’s a Many Saints of Newark 2. Honestly, it would be my heart’s delight if they would just do a prequel series. This would be my dream. I’m not ready to let this character go, and with an actor like Jonny, who is such pure joy to be in a scene with, I feel it’s just the beginning.

It’s funny that you wound up doing this not long after the A&E series Bates Motel ended. What’s the challenge of playing an infamous screen mother when the audience already thinks they know her?
Finding out their identities is the challenge. We meet Norma from Psychoand Livia from The Sopranos at the end of their lives. They were very different. I believe that Norma Bates experienced a lot emotional trauma in her lifetime. Livia is the one I think of as having a narcissistic personality disorder. Regardless, it’s still the same challenge: How did Norma become the decrepit corpse in the rocking chair? How did she get to this point? What made Livia the way she is? How can we make the audience love and root for someone they perceive as a villain? How can you make a conniving, domineering and sometimes hysterical mother, wife, or mother loveable? You’ve got to love her, and you’ve got to love playing her.

What did you love about Livia?
Livia was a master of manipulating men. I find her self-pity hilarious. As I do with women like her, and I know many of them, the trick is to accept the contradictions. One of Livia’s famous sayings is, “Now I don’t like that kinda talk! It upsets me!” Yet she said whatever the fuck she wanted, right? She could go to any parade. Castrating females is fascinating to me. Because I know them, I have always done so. And it’s weird watching them! These women constantly criticize the men in my life. They have absolutely no self-awareness, and they’re constantly doing PDB — Public Displays of Beratement. It’s a special kind of crazy, those mothers that are a real whip, who live to make others’ lives miserable — the ultimate ball-breakers. But on the flip side, you’ve got to find something to honor about the character. And what I always find lovable is Livia didn’t mince words. There was no editing between her brain and her mouth. And that’s fun.

How was the pandemic for you during this time, when no one was working?
I’m obviously one of privilege, and the first part of the pandemic I was able to hole up. My husband and my kids are my best friends. It was a very special moment for us. I don’t like to be idle, and I’m a control freak, so I wanted to get control of this. To be completely honest, I became a farmer. I enjoy taking care of people, whether it’s feeding my family, friends, and neighbors. I am a nurturer. I [also] become incredibly creative in these moments of not knowing. My junior year at Hunterdon Central was my first. I got my paintbrushes out, sat at my piano, learned how to sew, and made tons for my kids.

Michael was a great example of how you can put your nurturing instincts to good use.
I think he’s the key for this. It’s just uncanny, what he does. Stepping into James’ shoes was incredibly brave, and raw, and touching to witness. And this kid was pure sunshine on set, through the dark reality that he was rebirthing his deceased father’s character. He was James’ connection. I felt that he orchestrated the whole thing from above. This added a new level of spirituality, which was profound. He’s very sensitive and caring, such a special, special kid. He’s the only reason, probably, any of us had the balls to pull it off.

Alan Sepinwall is Rolling Stone‘s chief TV critic and co-author of The Sopranos Sessions.