'The Sopranos' Movie: Alessandro Nivola In Talks to Star as Dickey Moltisanti

The Sopranos movie may have found a new cast member, as Alessandro Nivola is in talks to star as [...]

By Stephen Andrew

The Sopranos movie may have found a new cast member, as Alessandro Nivola is in talks to star as Richard "Dickey" Moltisanti.

According to Variety, the actor is currently in negotiations to appear in the film, playing the role of Tony Soprano's uncle, who was deceased during the run of the series.

The film — directed by Alan Taylor — is reportedly titled The Many Saints of Newark, and will be a prequel to the iconic television show. It is said to be set during the real-life Newark riots of the 1960s.

Nivola has been acting for many years, with his first major film role opposite Nic Cage and John Travolta in Face/Off. He later went on to star in other high profile films such as Jurassic Park III, American Hustle, Selma, A Most Violent Year, and The Neon Demon.

Most recently he appeared in the critically acclaimed indie films You Were Never Really Here and Disobedience. Next up, Nivola will be seen in The Art of Self-Defense alongside Jesse Eisenberg and Imogen Poots.

Earlier this year, Nivola spoke to Awards Daily about his role as Jewish Orthodox Rabbi Dovid Kuperman in Disobedience, a performance that has since earned him a British Independent Film Award nomination in the Best Supporting Actor category.

Notably, Nivola spoke candidly about what stuck out to him about the character when he first read the script.

"I think the thing that I felt drawn to, apart from the obvious opportunity to play somebody from a different background and experience and behavior as my own, was the fact that there was no villain in the story," he explained. "The movie was about three really good people who really loved each other and were thrust into this impossible situation just because of the nature of love and life."

"I felt that it made the story much more complex than if this character was a real antagonist and was set up as a kind of man for the audience to hate in order for them to long for this extramarital affair to be consummated," Nivola continued.

"That just tipped me off that this would be a movie that was going to deal with these situations in a subtle and complex way that would be surprising," Nivola went on to say. "It was also the chance to play someone from such a particular world that I was totally unfamiliar with that was a major challenge and that's something as an actor I totally long for."

At this time, there is no word on when The Many Saints of Newark will go into production.

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