The Reason James Gandolfini Wanted to ‘Beat the F—’ out of Harvey Weinstein Revealed

James Gandolfini allegedly wanted to “beat the f—” out of Harvey Weinstein, and now the reason why has been revealed. Two of Gandolfini’s former Sopranos co-stars, Steve Schirripa and Michael Imperioli, recently turned up on The Joe Rogan Experience podcast and shared the story.

According to the pair, Gandolfini’s issue with Weinstein revolved around the 2012 film Killing Them Softly, which the actor starred in alongside Brad Pitt and Ray Liotta. Weinstein wanted Gandolfini to make an appearance on The Tonight Show to promote the movie, but he wasn’t interested. Schirripa told Rogan that the disgraced Hollywood mogul “got f—ing nasty” with Gandolfini. Schirripa said that Gandolfini responded in kind. “I will beat the f— out of Harvey Weinstein! He f—ing calls me again, I will beat the f— out of him!” Schirripa quoted Gandolfini as saying. “For the money he paid me, I’m not f—ing doing it!” Schirripa then added, “Swear to God. And this is before all the Harvey Weinstein s— when he was still king s—.”

Imperioli then went on to clarify that this kind of intensity was actually very uncharacteristic of Gandolfini. He explained that the late actor was not really anything like Tony Soprano, his mob boss character from the iconic HBO series. “He was like a hippie,” Imperioli said. “Ya know, he was very laid back. Ya know, he wore, like, Birkenstocks and, like, a bandana on his head. He didn’t really talk like that.” Gandolfini starred in the series for 6 Seasons, from 1999 until its finale in 2007.

Sadly, Gandolfini passed away from a heart attack in 2013. he was 51 years old at the time of his death. Years later, numerous sexual assault, sexual harassment, and rape accusations emerged against Weinstein. He denied any wrongdoing but was effectively driven out of the film and TV industry. He has since been convicted of third-degree rape and a first-degree criminal sexual act. In March, sentenced in New York City to 23 years in prison. Weinstein is currently awaiting trial in Los Angeles, California for a number of similar charges. These charges include “forcible rape, forcible oral copulation, sexual penetration by use of force and sexual battery by restraint.”