'Sopranos' React to Angry Mob of Viewers
Jamie-Lynn Sigler wants the audience to imagine the ending to the mafia drama.
June 11, 2007 — -- When "The Sopranos" came to a close Sunday night with a surprise cut to a black screen, shocked fans were joined by at least one cast member who had no idea the successful series would end so abruptly.
"I know my father's still banging the side of the TV wondering if he missed the last 20 seconds," said actor Matt Servitto, who played agent Harris.
He attended a cast screening of the finale at HBO in New York City, along with mob boss Tony Soprano's fictional daughter Meadow — played by Jamie-Lynn Sigler — who offered no guidance as to what the ending meant.
"I don't know. What do you think?" Sigler said. "It's [up] to the audience — what do you think? That's the brilliance of David, she said, referring to David Chase, the series' creator. "All I'm going to say is that I'm so proud to have been a part of it. I thought it was amazing."
As the show ended, Tony Soprano sat in a booth with his wife and son as they waited for Meadow to walk in and join them at their table. But the screen cut to black before she reached them. As fans speculate about what would have come next in the scene, Servitto has a small clue.
"It was a real surprise. The ending was cut short from where it was in the script. Meadow actually came in and sat down and things went a little bit further in the script," Servitto said.
Moments before, Meadow had struggled to parallel park her car outside on the street, which brought its own challenges for Sigler.
"I'll have to say, I was working to parallel park badly. I'm actually a good parallel parker," Sigler said. "I'm from Long Island originally, so I have a lot of experience driving and parking."
"The Sopranos" helped HBO establish itself as a major competitor to the big networks, collecting 18 Emmy awards over eight years.
But its ending may not have been as popular with fans as the series was. When the credits rolled, HBO's Web site crashed from all the demands for an explanation, a refund for their subscription to the pay cable channel — or both.
A viewer party at the New Jersey strip club Satin Dolls, where Tony Soprano's Bada Bing club was set, turned sour after the ambiguous ending.
One viewer huffed and said, "I feel like I just wasted the last 10 years of my life."
That reaction was shared by a lot of "angry customers," according to Susie Quigley, the event manager at Satin Dolls.
"When the screen went blank, there was complete silence and ... a couple of curses," she told ABC's Bill Weir. "We had people walking out like we wrote the show, and I said, 'Hey, calm down, it wasn't our fault.'"
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