It’s been a little while since we’ve heard anything about the “Sopranos” prequel film, “The Many Saints of Newark,” that creator David Chase has been working on. Well, according to The Wrap, it looks like there’s been some movement on the film, with director Alan Taylor coming aboard to helm the film.
If the name Alan Taylor rings any bells for longtime “Sopranos” fans, then you would probably remember him from the variety of episodes he directed during the TV series’ acclaimed run. Recently, however, Taylor has been flirting with big-budget blockbuster filmmaking, as director of “Thor: The Dark World” and most recently, “Terminator: Genisys.” Yeah, those aren’t the best films to have on your resume, that’s for sure.
But don’t judge Taylor solely on those films. Before becoming a mediocre blockbuster filmmaker, Taylor was a TV directing veteran, helming episodes of series like “”Deadwood,” “Six Feet Under,” “Mad Men,” “Deadwood,” “Boardwalk Empire,” and of course, “Sopranos,” which earned Taylor an Emmy for his direction. Taylor’s second stab at a feature-length career– he started out in movies and directed the 1995 crime film “Palookaville” before moving into TV–was launched from “Game Of Thrones.” Long before directors like Miguel Sapochnik and Neil Marshall were directing the big-budgeted penultimate and final episodes of HBO‘s premier series, Taylor was directing those kinds of episodes in season one and two (he returned for that second-to-last episode, “Beyond The Wall” in season seven). But this “Sopranos” prequel will obviously be a return to something more small-scale and character-driven.
“The Many Saints of Newark” is said to take place decades before “Sopranos” and focus on the war between the Italian and African-American residents of New Jersey. While the time difference makes having actors from the HBO series appear in the film, characters that were in the acclaimed series are set to make appearances in the film.
As mentioned above, “The Many Saints of Newark” is written by Chase and “Sopranos” writer Lawrence Konner. There’s still no firm release date in place, but with a director chosen, it appears like the crew can start deciding on actors for the project.