Yes, it has been eight years since "The Sopranos" ended, and we are still talking about that ending. Creator/writer/director David Chase has long maintained a cryptic silence on the fate of Tony Soprano. And it speaks to how much that ending mystified viewers, that when Chase suggested last year Tony Soprano wasn’t dead, his reps had to get involved and say his comments were taken out of context. Now, he’s been given a chance to break down that final sequence, shot-by-shot, for DGA. But really, for all the theories about the ending, the answer can be found in Journey’s "Don’t Stop Believing" playing on the jukebox.
"I thought the ending would be somewhat jarring, sure. But not to the extent it was, and not a subject of such discussion," Chase explained about the show’s final moments. "I really had no idea about that. I never considered the black a shot. I just thought what we see is black. The ceiling I was going for at that point, the biggest feeling I was going for, honestly, was don’t stop believing."
"It was very simple and much more on the nose than people think," he continues. "That’s what I wanted people to believe. That life ends and death comes, but don’t stop believing. There are attachments we make in life, even though it’s all going to come to an end, that are worth so much, and we’re so lucky to have been able to experience them. Life is short. Either it ends here for Tony or some other time. But in spite of that, it’s really worth it. So don’t stop believing."
So, there you go. It’s not exactly zen wisdom, but a simple enough explanation. Does that satisfy your questions about why Chase went with the ending he did? Let us know below.