The Sopranos: 10 Great Spinoff Ideas, According To Reddit
Legendary HBO mobster show The Sopranos was full of complex characters, from Carmela to Paulie, and many could star in their own spinoff.
As one of the greatest shows of all time, The Sopranos has a wealth of tales and characters that would make for great spinoffs. One already came in the name of the HBO Max movie, The Many Saints of Newark, but fans and critics weren’t totally convinced by it, with lamentations ranging from the pace to the character development.
So what would a great spinoff look like? Redditors have all kinds of ideas about how the mob saga can or could have branched out. Some are ridiculous but a few are quite solid. Fans might never know whether these ideas would work if they had been commissioned to series but they sure are great ones.
The FBI Investigates The New Jersey And New York Mafia
Redditor SweeTLemonS_TPR feels that a spinoff detailing following the FBI as they work to take down the New Jersey and New York crime families would be great. They state, “A show from the FBI’s perspective specifically focusing on a major mafia takedown could be really interesting.”
This idea has worked well before. Most gangster movies and TV shows that take the angle of law enforcement often receive praises. The Brian De Palma project, The Untouchables, is a great example. In the Oscar-winning movie, Al Capone took a back seat as events revolved around the agents who helped bring him down. Narcos is another great example as even though it sufficiently covers the stories of the Mexican and Colombian drug lords, things are mostly looked at from the DEA’s perspective.
A Prison-Themed Show About Phil Leotardo
New York Don Phil Leotardo is always proud of the fact that he spent two decades behind bars and never snitched. For this reason, Dele advocates for a prison-themed series about him, stating, “Phil during his 20 years would be cool to see.”
Phil might not be the smartest member of the Lupertazzi crime family but he sure is the most ruthless, hence the correctional facility will always be his most cherished habitat. Since the most prominent gangsters always manage to pull strings from behind bars, audiences can be shown how Phil not only thrived behind the walls but also controlled whatever was happening on the outside.
Feech La Manna’s Exploits In Italy
Feech is described as one of the toughest mobsters there ever was. He claims to have become a “made guy” in Sicily even before electricity was invented and homerj90 feels a spinoff about Feech “becoming a made guy in the old country then emigrating to Jersey” would be excellent.
Since Feech actually served as an enforcer in Italy, a look into his past life should make for great viewing. And since the American Mafia has been explored time and time again, it would be fun to get a proper look at the Italian Mafia from Feech’s experiences.
A.J. Soprano Seeks Revenge For Tony’s Death
There are several clues that suggested Tony died in The Sopranos finale, which means some characters likely want vengeance. Complete-Let-2670 has an idea of A.J. doing just that, commenting, “I’d like if A.J. came back a badass and well trained looking for the man or men who killed his father.”
At first read, the idea seems like a stretch since A.J. isn’t a member of the mob and has no idea how the New Jersey and New York underworlds work. But fans who have doubts can easily be referred to Michael Corleone from The Godfather trilogy who also decided to make his father’s shooters pay even though he wasn’t even a made guy. Michael would then take over as head of the Corleone crime family. More importantly, A.J. has tried to seek revenge for harm done to his father before. He was more than ready to kill his own uncle for accidentally shooting Tony.
Ralph’s Business Dealings In Miami
Redditor SonnyPegano thinks fans ought to know more about Ralph’s days in Miami. The user says, “I would watch a prequel featuring Ralphie during his time in Florida.”
Ralph is undoubtedly one of the best and most violent villains in The Sopranos and his time in Miami would probably be something close to Scarface. Before being summoned back to New Jersey after Richie’s death, he was overseeing the DiMeo family’s real estate interests in Florida and he likely caused plenty of bloodshed there. And since Ralph is quite hedonistic, a colorful show full of sex and crime should be captivating.
How The DiMeo Crime Family Was Founded
DiMeo crime family founder Ercole DiMeo is only mentioned in the show and ZackSnack007 argues it would be good to see how he formed the family. They state, “I would like to hear about the founder of the family Ercole DiMeo.”
Origin stories never fail to entertain and one about the major crime family in this fictional world would be must-see television. Though Tony is the family’s most famous boss, it has been stated that Ercole was more ruthless and much more intelligent, which is why he was boss for several decades. Viewers will definitely have a great time watching how he acquired and kept power.
A Comedy Featuring Artie And Paulie
Artie’s best quotes in The Sopranos are some of the funniest overall and so are Paulie’s. Hughkalailee believes the two would make a great comedy show. They even have a perfect name for it: “The Cook and The Crook.”
Artie and Paulie both do a great job of diluting The Sopranos‘ darker themes with their comedic moments. More humor from them wouldn’t be such a bad thing. The series could still work right now, with an older Artie mentoring a young group of chefs at the Vesuvio, and Paulie possibly as the new boss of the DiMeo crime family.
A Different Crime Family
The Sopranos focuses on the DiMeo and Lupertazzi crime families, but what if the lens was on a different one? Lockdown81 expresses their opinion with the comment, “I wouldn’t mind a show set in the same universe but with a different family.”
There are a couple of options, such as the Buscetta crime family that wanted to lure Tony into the drug trade business and the Zucca crime family, which had a female boss. A show centering on Annerlisa Zucca would particularly be interesting in the current times since mob movies and TV shows tend to only focus on portraying male Dons.
Hesh In The Music Industry
Regarding who would be the best character for a spinoff, Redditor MatthewVM31 singles out Hesh. “I think someone like Hesh would be very interesting because of his history in the music business,” they say.
As the founder of “F-Note Records,” Hesh is said to have brought many Black musicians to prominence in the ’50s and ’60s. How exactly he did that would be a great story. To make things more compelling, the show could be a drama musical, blending stage performances with criminal proceedings.
Furio On The Run
Furio is forced to go on the run in order to not get killed for having an affair with Tony’s wife Carmela, and TheCurtain512 argues this creates the perfect idea for a spinoff. The Redditor even creates a perfect cover gig for him: “He’s somewhere in Europe running a PI agency.”
It makes sense for Furio to be hiding somewhere other than his home country of Italy since Tony obviously has eyes there. Even after Tony dies, it would be hard for Furio to come back to New Jersey since coveting the Don’s wife is a cardinal sin and punishment would still be meted out by the next boss. Nonetheless, Carmela can come up with a way to find him wherever he is, creating perfect romance and fugitive themes.
