also previously reported in the 2021 book, “Tinderbox: HBO’s Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers.” According to the book, Gandolfini signed a contract that would pay him $5 million per season.
HBO doubled his salary after the third season aired in 2001.“The Sopranos” aired for six seasons, from 1999 to 2007. Gandolfini died from a heart attack at age 51 in 2013.
In “Wise Guy David Chase and The Sopranos,” fellow cast member Drea de Matteo said, “When Jim [Gandolfini] got the deal, none of us even knew it was on the table.
Like we didn’t know to negotiate. I think he felt terrible about that. So, he called us into his trailer, one by one, and gave everybody a check for $30,000.”However, this didn’t apply to everyone.