James Gandolfini

Acting

James Gandolfini

Born 1961-09-18 · Westwood, New Jersey, USA

James Joseph Gandolfini Jr. (September 18, 1961 – June 19, 2013) was an American actor and producer. He was best known for his role as Tony Soprano, the Italian-American crime boss in HBO's television series The Sopranos, for which he won three Emmy Awards, three Screen Actors Guild Awards, and one Golden Globe Award. Gandolfini's portrayal of Tony Soprano is widely regarded as among the greatest performances in television history. Gandolfini's notable film roles include mob henchman Virgil in True Romance (1993), Lt. Bobby Dougherty in Crimson Tide (1995), Colonel Winter in The Last Castle (2001) and Mayor of New York in The Taking of Pelham 123 (2009). Other roles are enforcer and stuntman Bear in Get Shorty (1995) and impulsive "Wild Thing" Carol in Where the Wild Things Are (2009). For his performance as Albert in Enough Said (2013), Gandolfini posthumously received much critical praise and several awards, including a Screen Actors Guild Award nomination and the Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Supporting Actor. In 2007, Gandolfini produced Alive Day Memories: Home from Iraq, a documentary in which he interviewed injured Iraq War veterans and in 2010, Wartorn: 1861–2010 examining the impact of post-traumatic stress disorder on soldiers and families throughout several wars in U.S. history from 1861 to 2010. In addition to Alive Day Memories, he also produced television film Hemingway & Gellhorn (2012), which gained him a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Limited Series nomination. In 2013, Gandolfini died of a heart attack in Rome at the age of 51.

Acting credits

The Drop poster
6.8

Bob Saginowski finds himself at the center of a robbery gone awry and entwined in an investigation that digs deep into the neighborhood's past where friends, families, and foes all work together to make a living - no matter the cost.

The Drop

2014

True Romance poster
7.5

Clarence marries hooker Alabama, steals cocaine from her pimp, and tries to sell it in Hollywood, while the owners of the coke try to reclaim it.

True Romance

1993

Zero Dark Thirty poster
7.0

A chronicle of the decade-long hunt for al-Qaeda terrorist leader Osama bin Laden after the September 2001 attacks, and his death at the hands of the Navy S.E.A.L. Team 6 in May, 2011.

Zero Dark Thirty

2012

The Last Boy Scout poster
6.8

Somewhere in Los Angeles, the city of broken dreams, a stripper is murdered. Now, the private detective she had hired and her ex-footballer boyfriend are going to find her murderer... if they don't kill each other first. But the more they dig, the deeper they become enmeshed in a web of extortion, blackmail and corrupt politics hidden beneath the surface of professional football.

The Last Boy Scout

1991

Crimson Tide poster
7.2

After the Cold War, a breakaway Russian republic with nuclear warheads becomes a possible worldwide threat. U.S. submarine Capt. Frank Ramsey signs on a relatively green but highly recommended Lt. Cmdr. Ron Hunter to the USS Alabama, which may be the only ship able to stop a possible Armageddon. When Ramsey insists that the Alabama must act aggressively, Hunter, fearing they will start rather than stop a disaster, leads a potential mutiny to stop him.

Crimson Tide

1995

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 poster
6.4

Armed men hijack a New York City subway train, holding the passengers hostage in return for a ransom, and turning an ordinary day's work for dispatcher Walter Garber into a face-off with the mastermind behind the crime.

The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3

2009

Fallen poster
6.8

Homicide detective John Hobbes witnesses the execution of serial killer Edgar Reese. Soon after the execution the killings start again, and they are very similar to Reese's style.

Fallen

1998

8MM poster
6.5

A small, seemingly innocuous plastic reel of film leads surveillance specialist Tom Welles down an increasingly dark and frightening path. With the help of the streetwise Max, he relentlessly follows a bizarre trail of evidence to determine the fate of a complete stranger. As his work turns into obsession, he drifts farther and farther away from his wife, family and simple life as a small-town PI.

8MM

1999

Where the Wild Things Are poster
6.5

Max imagines running away from his mom and sailing to a far-off land where large talking beasts—Ira, Carol, Douglas, the Bull, Judith and Alexander—crown him as their king, play rumpus, build forts and discover secret hideaways.

Where the Wild Things Are

2009

12 Angry Men poster
7.7

During the trial of a man accused of his father's murder, a lone juror takes a stand against the guilty verdict handed down by the others as a result of their preconceptions and prejudices.

12 Angry Men

1997

The Man Who Wasn't There poster
7.5

A tale of murder, crime and punishment set in the summer of 1949. Ed Crane, a barber in a small California town, is dissatisfied with his life, but his wife Doris' infidelity and a mysterious opportunity presents him with a chance to change it.

The Man Who Wasn't There

2001

The Last Castle poster
7.2

A court-martialed general rallies together 1200 inmates to rise against the system that put him away.

The Last Castle

2001

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone poster
5.8

After breaking up with his longtime stage partner, a famous but jaded Vegas magician fights for relevance when a new, "hip" street magician appears on the scene.

The Incredible Burt Wonderstone

2013

Lonely Hearts poster
6.1

In the late 1940s, a murderous couple known as the 'The Lonely Hearts Killers' kills close to a dozen people. Two detectives try to nab the duo who find their targets via the personals in the paper.

Lonely Hearts

2006

Get Shorty poster
6.5

Chili Palmer is a Miami mobster who gets sent to L.A. to collect a bad debt from Harry Zimm, a Hollywood producer who specializes in cheesy horror films. When Chili meets Harry's leading lady, the romantic sparks fly. After pitching his own life story as a movie idea, Chili learns that being a mobster and being a Hollywood producer really aren't all that different.

Get Shorty

1995

The Juror poster
5.7

Struggling single mother Annie Laird impulsively agrees to serve on a jury, hoping for a little excitement in her humdrum life. But she gets far more than she bargained for when she's forced to sacrifice the truth to save her son from the mob's seductive, psychotic enforcer.

The Juror

1996

Killing Them Softly poster
6.0

Jackie Cogan is an enforcer hired to restore order after three dumb guys rob a Mob protected card game, causing the local criminal economy to collapse.

Killing Them Softly

2012

All the King's Men poster
5.8

The story of an idealist's rise to power in the world of Louisiana politics and the corruption that leads to his ultimate downfall. Based on the 1946 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel written by Robert Penn Warren, loosely based on the story of real-life politician Huey Long.

All the King's Men

2006

A Civil Action poster
6.5

Jan Schlickmann is a cynical lawyer who goes out to 'get rid of' a case, only to find out it is potentially worth millions. The case becomes his obsession, to the extent that he is willing to give up everything—including his career and his clients' goals—in order to continue the case against all odds.

A Civil Action

1998

Night Falls on Manhattan poster
6.4

A newly elected District attorney finds himself in the middle of a police corruption investigation that may involve his father and his partner.

Night Falls on Manhattan

1997

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil poster
6.3

A visiting city reporter's assignment suddenly revolves around the murder trial of a local millionaire, whom he befriends.

Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil

1997

The Mexican poster
6.0

Jerry Welbach, a reluctant bagman, has been given two ultimatums: The first is from his mob boss to travel to Mexico and retrieve a priceless antique pistol, known as "the Mexican"... or suffer the consequences. The second is from his girlfriend Samantha to end his association with the mob. Jerry figures alive and in trouble with Samantha is better than the more permanent alternative, so he heads south of the border.

The Mexican

2001

Welcome to the Rileys poster
6.6

Years after their teenage daughter’s death, Lois and Doug Riley, an upstanding Indiana couple, are frozen by estranging grief. Doug escapes to New Orleans on a business trip. Compelled by urgencies he doesn’t understand, he insinuates himself into the life of an underage hooker, becoming her platonic guardian.

Welcome to the Rileys

2010

Terminal Velocity poster
5.4

A maverick skydiver and a former KGB agent team up to stop the Russian mafia from stealing gold.

Terminal Velocity

1994