Who Killed Tony Soprano? | Ultimate Suspect Guide | The Sopranos Ending Explained
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0:00 (Intro)
00:56 (The final scene & did Tony die?)
02:21 (Alternative theories)
03:34 (Who shot Tony Soprano?)
04:27 (Who gave the order?)
05:22 (Rogue New York soldier)
05:42 (Lou "DiMaggio" Galina)
06:33 (Revenge for Eugene)
07:14 (Slava)
08:12 (Furio)
09:10 (Junior)
09:39 (Rhiannon)
11:16 (Little Carmine)
12:02 (Butch)
14:35 (Paulie)
15:34 (Patsy)
17:23 (Conclusion)
The Sopranos ending explained. Who killed Tony Soprano? Who shot Tony Soprano? What happened at the end of The Sopranos? Did Tony Soprano die?
In the final scene of The Sopranos, Tony arrives at Holsteins for a mean with his family, and selects Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing from the joke box console at his table. One after the other, Carmella and AJ arrive, with Meadow outside struggling to park her car. They eat, engage in small talk, and just as Meadow reaches the diner door, Tony looks up, and we cut to black. And so ends one of the most infamous endings to any TV show, one that has infuriated fans, leading many to think something was wrong with their TV when they first watched it. It is a hotly debated topic, even today decades later, as to what actually happened, with many fans thinking Tony was shot dead in that moment.
In this video, I wanted to explore the possibility of Tony having died, and in particular, running down a list of suspects of who could have wanted him dead and carrying it out. - ภาพยนตร์และแอนิเมชัน
*BONUS VIDEO: The Sopranos Ending | One MINDBLOWING Hidden Detail You Missed!*
th-cam.com/video/sZ8XiJY4u_E/w-d-xo.html
RIP Paulie 😢
It was those 2 black guys that always seem to be behind happenings in Jersey.🤔
,(
99
9
New York ordered it, Patsy and Paulie knew about it, the guy in the Members Only jacket did it. The family all witnessed it.
💯
Yup 👍
Yes New York would have to kill Tony to save face for how publicly Phil Leotardo was killed.
Honestly I don’t think Paulie did it yeah he did order a hit on some random ass guy while patsy was involved too and Christopher’s friend but I don’t know why I don’t think Paulie has no involvement in this patsy is definitely a top suspect
@@Stoicdexterthe points he was aware of it but didn’t let Tony know
I worked at a newspaper outside of Philadelphia during The Sopranos run and it turns out, the Member’s Only guy was a pizza shop owner in Pendel, Pennsylvania. He wasn’t an actor at all, but he caught the eye of a casting director. We interviewed the guy a few times and he always said he had no idea if he killed Tony or not. Pretty random, but true.
He killed himself in the show he couldn’t have
@@thomasburr9244 no that was Gene, we see another guy at the diner with the same Members Only jacket go to the bathroom, with a direct line of sight at Tony
It’s not bro, after the episode u can see the character name “ Jacket members only “ so that’s mean he’s important for the last scene
Why was he in a restaurant if he had his own pizzeria?
It was little johnny piss face
I’ve always thought it didn’t matter who killed Tony. I always thought the point was that Tony had become so vile, so evil, and so sociopathic that I’d didn’t matter who pulled the trigger because so many people would have been justified in doing so
I like that pov but still we would like to know
That is definitely the point Chase was trying to drive home. He also understood that open ended endings are great for keeping the viewer always wondering and guessing so it helped cement the show as one of the greats.
@@AlphaWasSpotted Chase also loves David Lynch and has many homages to Twin Peaks. Twin Peaks wrecked itself by revealing who killed Laura Palmer, something Lynch fought against but the network demanded. I think chase learned from that… a mystery is always more compelling than an answer
@@SweatyOracle precisely
Tony wasn't sociopathic. He wasn't really that evil.. Everything he did was justified by the chaos that is being the mob boss, and weirdly justified in his head. You guys act like the mafia are saints. Tony didn't go around killing and starting wars. Phil was an actual psycho, fighting Tony for 25% from dumping trash... And having killed his highest earning captain.
The biggest tragedy is all of them pushing Christopher to drink again. Asses, but Tony was somewhat justified in what he did to him in the mafia world, if he wasn't his cousin, Christopher would have gotten taken out ages ago by anyone else due to just being a liability.
Furio would never ever have the deed done right infront of Tonys family.
Good point
It obviously wasn’t him that would have did it but he would hire someone else
That's a great point.
Yeah I never thought it would be Furio, just never suspected it was. There are much bigger suspects and there doesn’t seem to be that strong of a motive coming from Italy. I believe it was Paulie, Patsy, or someone from NY
Gabagool got him at the end
“And that Animal Blundetto”
Woke up this morning, got some gabagool…
@@dillonwalshpvd and then I woke up the next day and got some…gabagool
In the end, fuck Santa Claus
Yeah heart attack by Gabagool got him
RIP Tony Sirico AKA Paulie Walnuts , he died yesterday 😥
Been a sad couple days.
😥 He will be missed greatly...
Paulie(referring to his prostate):
I dunno…What if it’s mastastesized.
Weird 3 legendary characters in basically one month..liotta, caan, and sirico
@@stancurry6265 you know the saying...
@@trip2belize they didn’t have the makings of varsity athletes
A little off subject but I heard a theory a few years back that not only did Tony get whacked at Holstens but that scene is actually Tony experiencing Hell. It’s a call back to when Chrissy( after a coma state )said his Dad was in hell and gets killed over and and over again and when Tony walks in the restaurant he sees himself like, “not again”. Not to mention ask the references to hell the devil and the afterlife in general in season 6B
I concur
A good theory for sure. The weird cuts of Tony definitely support that idea.
That is so fucking valid.
Holy shit I thought same thing and when I read your comment just blew my mind
I like that theory! And...Hell would certainly contain the insufferable AJ and the holier than thou but actually evil Carmella.
I always just believed it was all of these people who killed Tony. That’s the central point of the finale… Tony made SO MANY enemies that it was only a matter of time. Didn’t even matter if it happened in the diner, people would -never stop - coming for him. There’s only two endings for a guy in his position… in the ground or in jail.
The fundamental question is, will Butch be as effective a leader as Phil was? And he will be, even more so. But until then, it'll be hard to verify that I think he'll be more effective.
Lol
😂😂
Louis clapped him in hinds...... Lol i know thats not what he said but thats what it sounded like to me.
Was butch that guy with the makings of a varsity athlete? Or the guy wearing the mellifluous crown? Like at burger king?
@@mikimiyazaki No it was Ralphie who had the makings of a varsity athlete. Remember when he took Vito to slip n fall school while playing basketball?
I had always assumed the hitman was acting on Phil's order. The hitman didn't know Phil was dead. Phil's underlings didn't know about the hitman so couldn't contact him to abort the job
Here's a REAL video analysis.
THE SOPRANOS: All Questions Answered!
th-cam.com/video/FfPKFzGwl-M/w-d-xo.html
Yeah I agree, I think the simplest and most reasonable answer is that this was the product of an outstanding hit Phil placed. I wouldn’t be surprised if a part of the orders had tony going last so he could see his men die. I think Phil is petty/cruel enough to do that.
@@samuelault4723 you guys are braindead, Phil literally says multiple times tony needs to be done first, and he even got pissed off afterwards at the fact that tony wasn’t done first. And the members only jacket dude is someone we’ve seen before, he was walking across the street during that scene with all the Jewish people, tony made eye contact with him and was looking at him weird
This is what I've come to believe as well.
The hitman probably did know Phil was dead, but it didn't matter - he'd been paid in advance, and his professional reputation depends on him filling his contracts, even if - _especially_ if - the person who placed the contract is dead.
That's a really interesting way of looking at the Paulie/Patsy idea. It explains Paulie's odd behavior (and the show's odd focus on him) near the end; I always wrote it off as him maybe just feeling uneasy/sad about how most of the guys he was paling around with at the start of the show are dead, yet he's still around. But, it could just as easily be guilt, paranoia at being found out, discontent with where he is in life, or maybe just a mix of everything.
In any case, Tony definitely let himself get too engrossed in the Phil situation (not that I can blame him there), so that he didn't see he was left in a very precarious position in the aftermath. He had just done what he was too wary of doing to Carmine Sr. at John's insistence, most likely because he didn't want to be left as the fall guy. And his two biggest remaining guys are people he knows he's had to worry about before: Patsy, because dead brother; and Paulie, who's been increasingly disgruntled at his standing in the family, and who Tony at least suspects was talking to New York at some point.
To be fair, I don't think he had many options besides just trusting/hoping that he wouldn't get fucked over.
Paulie must also be wondering if it's his fault. in his mind, not only is the Cifaretto crew "cursed", but he may have been the one who indirectly caused Ralphie's death, and the tensions between them and New York he could also be blaming himself for, and at this point it's technically gotten Bobby and maybe Silvio killed. his closest friends are all gone. Tony, and Christopher's ghost who seems to "stand by him" instead of following Tony at the end of their last scene, is all he has left. and now he's put in a position where he may be betraying Tony and getting him killed as well. and it's essentially his fault. he could have tried harder with Chris too. basically with Tony telling him that he can't let "superstition" control his life, we're looking at the two figures who wreaked the most havoc in this show, one wracked with grief and worries about karma, and one with no guilt at all, who walks unknowingly off to hell.
Because of this and the fact his loyal crew/his strength were wiped out plus the fbi investigation i think the fade to black means it is over on way or another.
Can't easily dismiss Carmine. He worked himself into a prime position. He even got close to Chris with the movie to find out some inner workings and what makes Tony tick. He made sure to keep that beef going. And he also made the comment, after Rusty told Carmine to get out on the street to show his strength, that "that's not how I want to play this." He DID play. He positioned it to where his enemies would kill each other and he would takeover unchallenged with Butch at his side.
"It didn't have to be this way" x 3 times. And he knew that everyone thought he was a retard. And even now some fans seem to think so too just because he made stupid comments. Look at who benefited from the war without ever being at risk. The same man that likely found out Johnny and Phil wanted to kill his father(and possibly did). He had motive, means, and opportunity to get Phil and Tony out of the way.
Phil killed one of Carmine's guys(Angelo) and it is left in the air that Tony killed Rusty. Another of Carmine's. Revenge is warranted there.
And the members only jacket symbolizes the old way, the tradition. When Vito criticized Eugene over the jacket as it being old and out of style. Couple this with Butch noticing, during the war and out in the cold, their section has become chinatown. And when Patsy snarled when he visited the chicken shop and saw the neighborhood being taken over. The old way was dying. The old way got it's way in the end. The old boss' son played it to where all of this new beef was squashed and the original plan comes into fruition. Carmine Sr. had the intention to hand the power to Little Carmine. Carmine got revenge, eliminated his competition, and filled "the box."
Noah smacked Tony unconscious with a bag of charcoal briquettes.
😂😂😂
Jamal Ginsburg, the Hasidic homeboy?
Fade to "Black" ☻️
Punched his lights out 😅
That fuckin' butterhead.
I normally lean the Patsy taking power via Paulie and Butchie route. but, there is something about Little Carmine being a secret mastermind that I super love.
George Lucas should also have gone with the Darth Jar Jar option.
He was sitting at the table like Barzini
That mastermind aspect was best encapsulated by him leaving the life, not manipulating things behind the scenes.
Giving up the life was the smartest thing any of them did. That scene with LC and Tony on the golf course, the dream, the "I don't want to be the wealthiest widow in Long Island" from his wife...
LC was smarter than he was given credit for, but as fun as this theory is, I don't buy it for a second.
I think Patsy is the culprit.
Paulie doesn't gain much by taking out Tony.
Little carmine is rich as hell, whats he care.
@@nobshistoryengineering4421 Exactly.. if there's one thing we know about Paulie is that he's got weird paranoia and superstitions.. For me Paulie is not a convincing liar and I beleive that's he generally paranoid about the cat, and just a grumpy older guy. Would he take out Tony? Yes absolutely! But he had no reason to do so. My money is always been on Butchie but I like both the Patsy and LC theories.
Thou it did cross my mind in the final.. Tony lived in what could called a mansion byt in S6 we see Phil in a rather simple home comparatively. Yes he hadn't been Boss long but he was a head of the 5 familys. LC was probably way richer than Tony so maybe all money went to him and Phil was front man. A bit ot a stretch but if it were true then LC would be baddest gangster of all time :D
I think the most important thing to remember is… Phil was a boss. After learning that Phil was dead, Tony should have disappeared for a while. There’s no way one of the NY families is gonna just let it go after the acting boss got whacked… besides the next guy in line being forced to order a hit on Tony (all respect would be lost if he didn’t), half the guys in the family are gonna see it as their chance to rise in the ranks.
It’s almost like Tony was resigned to his fate and just wanted to enjoy one last meal with his wife and kids.
I think the ending was basically like the Red Wedding. Patsy played the role of Walder Frey, a minor power with a long-held secret resentment toward the protagonist, knowing where he’d be at a specific time. Paulie played the role of Roose Bolton, a major power within the kingdom giving cover, and hiring the muscle to carry out the plan. The New York mafia played the role of the Lannisters, approving the plan and promising support and to rule the remnants of the province within the new kingdom, in exchange for loyalty.
Here's a REAL video analysis.
THE SOPRANOS: All Questions Answered!
th-cam.com/video/FfPKFzGwl-M/w-d-xo.html
Lol why would new york do this so hard? Sopranos are finished by the end of season 6, just tony and genius paulie are left. No deal, they easily absorb new jersey cause sopranos are already finished, Morta!
@@AntiMullahsyeah everybody died
@@AntiMullahs They can't absorb NJ until Tony is out the picture though...
It was absolutely Paulie and Patsy. I just accept it as fact nowadays.
Sure, they could have been others tangentially involved. But the main power-players, so to speak, are Paulie, Patsy, and the NY mob.
Yeah I like the Butch, Paulie and Patsy theory. It puts things back low key, settles the scores, restores "honour", and gets rid of Tony the unstable sociopath. The only fly in the ointment is the significance of the members only jacket which implies something to do with Eugene.
Here's a REAL video analysis.
THE SOPRANOS: All Questions Answered!
th-cam.com/video/FfPKFzGwl-M/w-d-xo.html
Maybe that guy is one of Gene’s in laws. His wife looked 100% Italian to me. And had every reason to want Tony dead too. It wouldn’t be a stretch to think she had family connections to New York.
I don't buy Patsy Parisi, his son was getting married to Meadow.
Paulie neither. Tony's all he got left. No family, his other friends all dead. Nah
Butch taking out both bosses to take over, that I see.
i buy the Butch, Patsy and Paulie theory. I also think the guy in the members only jacket is just a distraction trick made by David Chase. Maybe...
It doesn’t mean it has something to do w Eugene. The members jacket just means that it was a mob hit. Lots of guys wore them
20 years later Sopranos is still the greatest show of all time. Breaking Bad is good but the rewatchability of the Sopranos gives it an edge.
It's like every single episode could be a short film, incredible storytelling!!!
Im on my 9 time rn.. feels like i know these fellas better then my own fawtha
Haha
Sopranos and the wire the best 2 shows ever and from the same network and were on tv around the same time and both are about crime .
I like to think the two shows are connected and when the characters go to jail they end up in Oz
Breaking bad is a masterpiece but sopranos I think is slightly better
I think it's much simpler. After their last phone call Butch realized that not much good was going to come out of a sit down with Phil "once all this is over", and he didn't appreciate how Phil talked down to him the whole time (i.e. "listen kid"), so he used Tony to get rid of Phil, and then got rid of Tony to both eliminate a rival that he never liked and to hide his own involvement in the plot against Phil. He'd come out clean and in a prime position to take over NY.
It's likely that he would have had Paulie killed at the same time. If Butchie's not going to trust Tony to keep his betrayal of his own boss secret, why would he trust Paulie? He may also be aware of how Paulie informed on Tony to Johnny Sac. Even if he's not aware of that, he doesn't respect Paulie.
I think Butchie would likely trust the other guys there who saw him betray Phil, being just his trusted right-hand man (who is also complicit) and the others being solidly retired and probably fearful of crossing Butchie.
By taking out Tony and Paulie, Butchie kills everyone who could use the betrayal to end his career. The New York family can't learn that Butchie killed his own boss to advance, or his career and life are over. He broke the most important rule. It's what the bosses fear most, as Johnny said to Tony when he tried to do the same thing anonymously. We know because of that how very taboo and unacceptable Butchie's betrayal was, and why he'd want to cover it up.
I think Paulie was involved. Remember he knew that Tony was considering taking him out as well, so he figured his days were numbered. Also, he always undermined Tony. I also noticed that Patsie when Meadow revealed she was dating his son, and they were at Tony's house, Patsie seemed extraordinarily happy and even smug. Like he knew something no one else did.
I took that as Patsy feeling he had hit the jackpot by having his son unite with the boss' daughter. That would make someone act like that.
@kurtanglerookieyear , your right, but Tony also had his twin brother killed and he still carried resentment for that. Tony kills his brother and now Meadow is dating his son. This puts him in a position to get really close to Tony's personal business and get leverage. That's why they took out Bobby and tried to get Silvio.. that would wipe out the whole power structure except, Paulie and Patsie, the two people who had the most to gain from Tony's death.
I always thought so too, Paulie also was in that weird fever dream sequence when Tony shot him in that train station. That always felt very out of place to me for what that scene was supposed to be about (Big Puss)
@user-ol7yf8hl7f , yeah I agree. His gut was telling him something. Then when Paulie dreamed he came home from Florida and Big Puss was cooking in his kitchen and Paulie told him to tell him when iys his turn. He knew his days were numbered.
The fact that people are still talking about this nearly 20 years later proves how great of a finale this was. I like most people was like wtf… at the ending but having watched it again I love it. Goes back to the days of filmmaking where endings were more ambiguous, and would give you something to talk about after the movie, instead of these big twist endings that became popular after the 6th sense that explains everything for you or even direct finite endings that just wrap everything up for the viewer. Yea, while watching those you can think it was pretty good, but you’re gonna forget about it in a couple months. Stuff like this was great. I think it’s pretty obvious btw that tony was killed with the overly long black screen before the credits roll. People who still hate it to this day and didn’t get it are just pissed that the ending wasn’t spoon fed to them.
It was a sub par ending on a sub par song. Show Tony getting whacked as he pushes Carmella and AJ under the table for safety. Show Tony stumble out of the restaurant and sit on the steps shot to pieces with Meadow seeing him through the rear view mirror as she tries to park. The last thing we see is Tony's face with a look of amazement, dread and that smile. So many great songs and it ends on that one. Don't even try and defend it.
"nearly 20 years"
It just shows how boring there lives are……
@@anonymousmc7727 lol… what’s that say about you who is commenting on someone commenting about it…
@@dmitritestacough8551 that could’ve been cool too, but I do like that they tried something different. I will agree, could’ve picked a different song.
Lmfao Phil's supernatural ability to turn into a house 🤣🤣🤣
i had to come here and see if someone else heard it 😭
What about it Coksucka?
@@PhilLeotardoHouse 😂😂😂
Tony was literally dead inside years before after figuring out he never had the making of a varsity athlete
Tony had a fatal heart attack. Christopher foreshadowed it at his intervention.
It was NY. The guy went to the restroom to give time for Meadow to arrive so she can have a front row seat. It was payback for having done the hit on Phil in front of his wife and grandkid. On top of all that, the car rolls over phil's head in public. NY wasnt about to shrug off the way the boss of their fam was taken out. So they did it in public and in front of his fam
True
Idk they definitely got the ok to dust Phill.
@@michaelseeker9680 butch even said “do what you gotta do”
@@MarioMario-nj6kz yeah but he probably didn’t mean “make a scene that embarrasses him & traumatizes his family + random strangers”
@@CaptainTrips560 he don’t give a fuck about him he wants to absorb jersey
The main thing that sells me on the rihanon theory is when him and carmela were talking about something, and she was in the room and carmela didnt want to talk with her there and tony was like "who's she gonna tell" i just cant forget that line
It was Dr Melfi , he didn't pay his bills
😂😂😂😂😂😂 good one!!!
But you didn't.
I think the most plausible theories are Butch, Patsy and especially Eugene’s wife with the members only jacket as the link, plus she said to him “someone should put a bullet to his fing head!” She definitely seemed like she had the aggressiveness and motivation to hire someone and carry out a hit.
Dr Melfi. That would have been wild. Tony had no idea she was Furio's cousin and gave up Tony to prevent Furio from being killed.
Love all the unique theories in comments but this one is best!
Ohhhhhh! Always w the scenarios
The bottom line is the heads of both families had to go . My theory is Tony never makes it back from the meeting with New York and at the scene of him and Paulie sat outside with the driver going past in the car looking straight at the camera .The store being all black in the background he’s already dead at this point and in purgatory where he gets killed every night in front of his family over and over again. As the creator of the show has told us many times it’s all there if you put everything together other peoples deaths other peoples experiences it all adds up
I know Vito's bottom was impacted if that's what you were referring too.
What’s “all there”? The explanation to your theory? I think it’s just likely that Pauly knew that Tony had to go and didn’t warn him and made a deal with New York. Also that sounds much too esoteric for the sopranos. And doesn’t sound like purgatory at all
@@princegobi5992 It’s all there as in right across the series if I have to spell it out you haven’t watched the series properly
@@princegobi5992 fuckin slander if you ask me
@@xgymratx nah, he’s a survivor. He mentions surviving the second Colombo war in the seventies. He’s seen power struggles and has survived this entire time through his shrewdness and ability. It’s pretty admirable. When you know your boss is gone either way, at this point it’s about securing your own future. How else would you explain the look paulie has on his face when he’s leaving the club?
Season 6 episode 20, Tony is talking to Agent Harris to get a location on Phil, Agent Harris CASUALLY mentions that he's been busy with intel on a "Slavic cell movement." The VERY next episode, Tony was "killed by the guy in the Member's Only jacket". With that said, Tony died because of what happened in Pine Barrens. (Valery was in the tree, doubled back and took Paulie's car.😏) Reannan was I believe related to Slava. She was used to get close AJ in order to set up the hit. THAT'S why she was so important to the last episode. The movement that Agent Harris was trying to get intel on was the actual hit on Tony. Not to mention the Member's Only jacket theme which can be seen in Season 3 episode 10. The Russian Igor who roughed up Janice (who's information Tony got from Slava) had the same color jacket on when they stuffed him in the ambulance. The VERY next episode after that, Pine Barrens.
I remember hearing a piece of evidence for tony getting whacked was meadow. She failed to park 2 times but got it on the 3rd attempt. If this was a attempt at tonys life it would have been the third one thus, it being successful
It was Patsy Parisi. His son was dating meadow, he knew where Tony would be because of meadow.
Tony killed his brother and Patsy knew he was next if he didn't kill Tony first
YEP THIS IS THE RIGHT ONE
@@brobsty1856 bullshit thenbrother dies in the second season
@@aleNoyz91 so you think he forgot?
@@aleNoyz91 Bro do you seriously think people would just forget about their siblings death that easily, especially in the mafia?
It was New York- one of the families, maybe all of them. I know Tony was given the nod on Phil, but they shot Phil in the head in front of his wife and grandkids, and then allowed a SUV to squash his head like a grape. That’s not going unanswered. Tony’s death is one of the most graphic in TV history we just don’t see it because of the camera angle. But he is shot in the head by Members Only while sitting across from his wife and son, and with his daughter walking in just in time to witness the whole thing. It was a payback for the graphic Phil murder.
There was an amazing breakdown video i haven't been able to find again. It made so much sense and went into crazy detail with chase's style of using foreshadowing and religious themes and metaphors etc. He talked about how the song "journey" referenced journey into the afterlife and how aj, carmela, and tony each ate 1 onion ring in one bite which was like eating the bread symbolizing christ before making the journey into death. There was way more to it but essentially it concluded that the entire family minus meadow were all killed.
Lol, please dude. Most graphic death in TV history? How? It didn’t happen! I get that it’s heavily implied, but that never actually happened on the show. The show ends with Tony looking up at Meadow walking in. That’s all. No murder, no graphic death scene. Tony never died on TV. We are left to imagine it. Which is pretty damn lazy imo.
@@Trundle_TheGreat because your simple minded and can’t follow the clues right under your nose. You watch the show, and watch the last episode, you’ll see fairly clearly he got shot. “You probably don’t even hear it happen, right?”
Here's a REAL video analysis.
THE SOPRANOS: All Questions Answered!
th-cam.com/video/FfPKFzGwl-M/w-d-xo.html
@@Trundle_TheGreat You weren't very good at analysing books and stuff at school when you were younger were you?
I watched this originally and have rewatched it all the way through twice since. Great show. Great writing. Great acting and great characters.
Eugene also killed a man in a diner with the initials TS and his wife even said in the same episode “why don’t you put a bullet in his head” in regards to Tony
Ray Liotta, James Caan and Tony Sirico RIP
Uncle Junior: "These things comes in threes"
Great job breaking down the butchie/paulie/patsy theory. It makes the most sense. This isn't even mentioning paulie and the barber scissors which presumably could have been from butchie's salon
Fun video and as you can imagine, I love the Patsy theories. Well done.
I think you're right, Butch, Paulie, and probably Patsy all turned on their bosses and once the war was over, Butch and Paulie took their seats at the top and began working together. Patsy obviously never liked tony because of the death of his brother too. Paulie also knew he was done with Tony after Tony debated killing him on the boat. at that point Paulie probably knew it was only a matter of time before it was either him or Tony.
Been on board with the Pauly and Patsy theory since I first heard it and it makes sense when you throw in the Buchie angle. Buchie sells his boss out, Pauly and patsy sells theirs out, and everyone is on the same page
That in your paragraph is the best explanation of that theory.
I like to think it was Angie who hired Patsy and Bennie out of revenge.
Noah saying he would knock Tony's lights out is still one of the wildest statements in television history 🤣 🤣 🤣 🤣
Lmao fr he’s just another toothpick
It's the all time who done it what happened... I remember being in shock as the screen went black and moments until the credits being in complete disbelief. Iconic ending don't stop believing
The reason Phil got killed wasn't because his guys were plotting against him. It was because of one sentence he said: "when this is over we got to sit down" that put butch on the defensive...but that said Tony killed Phil and Butch killed Tony . I also really believe hbo didn't want the character killed off because of potential reunion shows or Soprano movies. Remember HBO had another big show around the same time as The Sopranos: Sex in the City and that had three movies AFTER it was done airing on HBO
It didn't matter what Phil said to Butch the scene was symbolic. The fact Butch was running around in China town being led astray is why he killed Phil.
Because of the members only jacket I always felt it was Eugene's wife that hired a hit man to take out Tony she would've had the money and the motive, but your Butchie, Paulie, and Patsy theory is actually pretty solid.
Don't know about Butchie but Patsy and Paulie certainly hlook to be the prime suspects via foreshadowing.
It would seem a bit crazy for a hitman to wear something so identifiable though.
@@IainFrame especially if they then sat at the counter for a half hour so that as many people could see and remember him as possible, when he could have just capped him when he first came in.
I don't think that guy had anything to do with the hit. Nothing he did would make sense for a hitman.
@@timwhite5562 Agreed. He definitely looked like a chunkier version of Eugene but yeah how would he (or Eugene's wife) have known anything about the fairly trivial previous Members Only jacket conversation? I can't imagine a ruthless made man going home and crying to his wife that the guys had made fun of him. Could be a red herring.
@@IainFrame the only reason everyone focuses on him is because we're meant to. If they would have focused on the guy with the boy scouts instead, we'd all by finding every possible link to back up why HE was the killer.
People talk about how he went to the bathroom like Michael in The Godfather, but Michael did that because he HAD to. They were searched for weapons so he couldn't bring one with him, he had to have one stashed before hand. That's the only reason he went to the bathroom, this guy didn't have that issue.
If this was the hitman, he would have shot him and left. Even if it was some thing where he had to do it in front of the wife (maybe because Phil was killed in front of his wife) he had plenty of time before the time came here. If it was some strange thing that he had to wait for the family: 1) like you said, how would he know?
2) why didn't he wait outside for them to show, instead of sitting in the most visible section for a half hour first?
3) sometimes a hitman will sit inside and wait. However it's always so they can follow the target out when they leave, and they do it in the parking lot. Not here...
*(Side note: In an interview, David Chase and director had said that they were going to revisit the Russian guy In a later episode. The story was going to be that he was discovered by a Boy Scout troop that were hiking or camping in Pine Barrens. They were going to find his boss's telephone number in his pocket and contact him. The story was he was going to survive, but have had permanent brain damage.
The boy scouts troop was an odd thing to show up in the last episode. Maybe a link? Possibly)
PS: I f'cking LOVE those DGT Goldtops. The one Achilles heels I always found with PRS was the control layouts. A Strat or Tele with master volume and master tone controls, I'm fine with; I play a Strat 80% of the time anyway. But 2Xhumbuckers I need individual Volumes. I have a McCarty 594 so I don't have that issue, but with CE22 and CU22 I had in the past, I had to replace the master volume with a stacked pot so I could adjust the volume on both. A master volume on the hollowbodies makes no sense. Every semihollow player I know keep the pickup in the middle position and dial the sound in with the volume controls. You don't even have the optt on the HB unless you go to the 594.
IMO, if in the future I wanted another 22 with a tremolo, the DGT is always the way to go. Plus I like the heftier body and neck profile., 👍
I don’t know if any of the NY crews really helped Tony at all, it was the fed that tipped him off where Phil was making calls from. They may not have done anything except make tony feel comfortable & become more accessible until Phil popped him. Or until they were able to take out both Phil & Tony for causing trouble.
I could see Phil and Tony being whacked by their respective crews for breaking codes and making tsunami size waves. Albert Barisi mentioned that Tony’s plug should be pulled if Tony killed Ralph over Pie-O-My, and members in Tony’s family easily put together that Ralph’s beat down was over Tracee. I know the rules were habitually broken in the show, but those two instances are hanging offenses according to mob TH-camrs. Couple those with Tony sleeping with made men’s gumars and you have enough juice to push the mutiny Junior warned him about…
@@mattmolloy636 exactly they was one of my theories .. thst they let tony get Phil just so they could get tony.. his men sold him out just like Phil’s men did to him
I think that's exactly how it went down. The theory that Paulie was involved is beyond reason. Forget the Easter eggs and foreshadowing, the only reason for Paulie to do it is self-preservation, and by this point in the story about don't think that would have been enough. If this had been a year or two earlier, that would have been plenty reason for Paulie to go along with hitting Tony. Now? No way.
It's like the dude in Miami said to Tony about him; "Paulie wouldn't do anything like that, he loves you. He doesn't have a wife or kids, you're all he has, you and the rest of the guys."
By this point it's literally JUST Tony. Chris, Bobby, Silvio (probably), Carlo are gone. Hell even Vito, as backwards as Paulie was, at least he was someone he knew. The cherry on top was his mother/aunt "Ma," who's wake was the same day as Chris'. Honestly I don't see any motivation for him to support killing Tony. The only one left was Patsy, who he didn't even like.
It was NY.
@@timwhite5562 Paulie had already gone behind Tony’s back when he was talking to Johnny Sack. The only thing Paulie really loved was Paulie
@@trapcorleone4321 also maybe they let Tony think that so he could let his guard down. NY probably didn’t think Tony would be able to actually track Phil down.
I believe it was designed to have many paths towards Tony's demise, in the end it didn't matter who exactly, the game itself killed Tony.
Tony dying just makes the most sense. All the subtle clues confirm it.
Finished watching the series for the first time last night. The scene where Tony visits Uncle June for the last time, then goes to the restaurant and immediately cuts to him already sitting down on a table. It gave me the chills. My immediate thought was that it was another dream sequence, specially because of the way they first showed Tony entering the restaurant and abruptly showing him already sitting there, almost like if he was seeing himself from a third person perspective. I was sooo sure that they were going to suddenly cut to him "waking up" from that dream or something. I like the theory about Paulie and Patsy, really nice video!
There are some great videos out there that break down the final scene frame by frame. It seems clear that they wanted to establish for the viewer that Tony had a clear sightline to the door. Then each time the doorbell rings, Tony looks up and we cut to his perspective, a view of the door. Finally, in the last moment, the doorbell rings, Tony looks up toward the door, and we cut to his perspective, which is now black because he is dead. A beautiful, poetic, and ultimately cinematic way to depict his ultimate fate.
@@mleone77 the last scene wasnt from his perspective tho. The camera was FACING Tony when it turned to black.
When someone pointed this out (Tony seeing himself sitting at the table), it blew my mind.
I like to think that Tony was killed and is in purgatory/hell. His punishment is to continually witness himself getting whacked in front of his family.
When he walks through the door and the camera switches to seeing Tony sitting at the table by himself it then switches back and you see a look on Tony's face, like a defeated depressed here we go again look. Like he's seen this before and knows what's coming.
@@cesarguerra8102 immediate cut to his perspective
@@cesarguerra8102 No, It cut to his pov shot, which was black.
David Chase literally addressed the Rhiannan theory and shot it down so I think we can rule that out.
So I worked on Sopranos from the HBO side, for its entire run. David Chase said to the production executive who oversaw the Sopranos that "I don't think Tony died in that moment. But he knows it's coming for him; either the Feds arrest him or a bullet gets him - either way, it's a hell of paranoia for his remaining time". This was shortly after the finale aired. What's interesting is how David Chase's view on this seems to have evolved over time to the point where he seems to now feel Tony died. Straight from the creator's mouth, so take of this what you will...
I wonder if he was just trolling
Even the most optimistic reading doesn't leave Tony with much time left.
@anon2427 - I talked with him all the time and he was the most humorless, depressed-sounding person I worked with, so I really doubt it, but honestly, who knows? I mean, it's his show, his character, he gets to decide what happens - I just found it odd that he gave one explanation to my boss, and (years later) a different story...
@@macfilms9904 I think Chase's understanding of the ending may have evolved across time. That happens sometimes with artists, like how Harold Ramis changed his mind about how long the time loop in Groundhog Day lasted. Or how George Lucas changed his mind over who shot first.
How Chase felt about the ending in 2007 may differ from his thoughts on the subject today.
I think even James Gandolfini's passing and the constant hounding by the press and the entertainment industry may have locked him into this more depressing, more certain interpretation of the ending.
Additionally, from snippets I've read about him in interviews and from the sense of humor present in the show, I get the feeling Chase has a really dry and dark sense of humor. Like when he told the story about what happened to the Russian and said he was found by boy scouts. Maybe he actually meant that, but I felt like he was telling a shaggy dog story in jest to get simple-minded people to quit asking him about it. "Here you go, here's a crappy but very direct answer if you need one so badly."
I could definitely be wrong though. I've never met the guy and can't really say I've got a good read on him.
That's super cool you got to know him, though, even if he does have a very depressive demeanor. He's a fascinating guy to me.
Patsy killing Tony “won’t be cinematic” was a nice reference for the fans.
Safe it’s safe to say Chase left a lot of options open for the real soprano movie. That is until Jim passed away
They could always pick up after the finale and tell what happens to Tony's family after his death.
@@jacksonteller3973 You cant close the door to Gandolfini when alive and u cant do it after his real death as its in bad taste.
@@TheJUDGEMENTHOL bad taste my ass, if that was the case they wouldn't have done that Many Saints of Newark.
@@jacksonteller3973 Newark had an all new cast, get real
@@TheJUDGEMENTHOL you get real.
Always thought Butchie was the obvious choice but you really broke down that air of strangeness with Paulie and Patsy damn I think you're last scenario is the most likely! Great content as ever
Their behavior was way too bizarre In that last episode.
They were both authorized by Butchie, so its pretty much what you are saying.
I love the idea of it being Georgie. It never crossed my mind but if there ever was someone Tony fucked over for absolutely no reason who was completely innocent, it's Georgie.
CONSERVE!
I love your fine eye for detail thanks for the video.
I just watched the whole video and I have to say - How much more betrayal can I take!
Does it feel like a knife to your haaht?!
I am with you CineRanter, I think Butch, Paulie and Patsi all conspired to have Tony killed. Great video!
This is the most realistic theory, 8t was ABSOLUTELY Butch DeConcini who had him killed, Patsy was definitely in on it (not 100% sure about Paulie, it would make sense given his flippancy, but... it's Paulie haha. RIP Tony Sirico 😭).
I have absolutely no idea how ANYONE thinks Tony Soprano is alive, he clearly got brained at Holstons. Right from episode one, "there are 2 endings for a guy like me", and Carlo had flipped... even if Tony somehow lived he'd have been sent to prison for life.
I still say it was cineranter, borko and sopranofan57. Glorified crew
After rewatching the end, it was Carmine, Jr. It was very weird when in the last sit down between Tony and Phil that Carmine, Jr. brought up Billy being whacked, saying “whatever happened there.” Tony and Phil had things worked out, but Carmine, Jr. kept the bad blood brewing knowing the flames would be ignited. He allowed them to go to war with clean hands hoping that Phil would be taken out. If he wasn’t taken out, no harm no foul, Carmine wouldn’t be implicated and would stay in retirement. However, with Phil gone, Carmine, Jr. could fill the family’s leadership vacuum without much resistance. Phil, Doc, Phil’s protégée, Johnny all would be gone. Butchy wasn’t a boss, he was muscle. When Butchy agreed to give up Phil, Carmine, Jr. had a clear path to make an agreement with Butchy to allow Butchy to put the plan in place to takeout Tony, and Butchy as underboss would have been the person to handle Jersey for the family.
Pontecorvos Wife hiring a hit man holds the most meaning in conjunction with the final scene. Could even be a brother or family member, since he didn't look relaxed and was wearing the MO jacket. But the fact that Tony gets to carry on and enjoy the little moments with his family, while the Pontecorvos attempt at a normal life was destroyed by Tony, has some obvious poetic justice if it's a pontecorvo arranged hit.
THIS
The Patsy, Paulie, Butchie theory makes the most sense. "It's all yours" gives it away, but I think Tony survived the hit but eventually went to prison and died a few years later in prison. I only say he survived because of the potential movie that was to be made. It would have dealt with the fallout of the failed hit and Tony realizing that Patsy and Paulie were backed by NY to take him out as an eye for an eye for Phil.
that sounds crazy!! where did you hear it?
@@mateojimenezgaleano6876 yea seriously though! I'm in a few Soprano fan groups on Facebook where we're always bouncing theories off of each other ( like I've heard some REALLY dumb theories in that group) and that one is new to me
Yeah but it never happened so Tony is dead.
I've always thought a version of this. David Chase left it open ended and was always ambiguous never commiting to a specific interpretation, because there was always the chance for a movie deal or a show reboot- that is until James Gandolfini died. With the actors tragic death there was no real point in having Tony alive, so his death has (pretty much) become canon.
They did the movie, but it was a prequel.
There is no longer any doubt that Tony died. David Chase himself said so.
I honestly don't think it matters who killed him and why. So many people had a reason, it literally could have been any of them
Excellent analysis💯
Tony dies from heart attack in hospital… entire final episode is a dream as Tony dies
NY, specifically Butchie DeConcini. (edit: he lured him out of hiding and led him to believe the war was over).
RIP Tony Sirico❤
Patsy and Paulie Iv seen many times when it comes to Tony’s death and you did a great job explaining it. I love the Butch theory on how Philly was wacked in front of his family so Butch would have to do something similar to Tony not to look weak.
Tony never got killed because the show ended before anything could happen to him
My head canon is the Pontecorvo theory. It's probably the most explicitly nodded to theory in the show, and poignant in that it's representative of the many people Tony had wronged--that his death could have come from many different avenues.
It was clearly those 2 black guys.
Definitely not
My issue with Patsy working with New York is that they shot up him and Sil in the car. They could’ve came to the agreement later or purposely let him get away but that just feels a bit awkward doesn’t it?
Yes this is why I don't believe Patsy was involved. They made it a point to have Patsy get shot at, him returning fire and him escaping. No agreement could be made and trusted when they(NY) tried to take your life.
Maybe he was setting Silvio up.... doubt it tho
Everyone in the booth died not just Tony... I like that idea
R.I.P paulie walnuts
I always thought that the hitman went to the bathroom so that he would be coming up behind Tony as he exited the restaurant. That's where I think he shot him. In the head, from behind, after leaving the bathroom
Starting the list of Tony’s enemies with Georgie was hilarious 😂
I have always thought it was a the members only guy but he had no orders to do the hit. He went off the reservation just like Tony B did. Some poetic justice of sorts
R.I.P. Tony Sirico
Nobody kills Tony. You don't need the series to end that way to know that the fate of Tony will end up in violence, betray and misery. He hasn't matured even a little bit, he hasn't changed, his life remains exactly the same as the series beginning, so in the last scene what you have is an omen of what is going inevitable to happen.
well said SG
Tony has to live the rest of his life afraid of who is coming through the door, people who want to hurt him or arrest him. People forget the show is about the end of the Italian mob, and the end is comprehensive. New guys are idiots, addicts or psychos, middle management is dead, snitching or in jail, and the top guys are losing their revenue streams. Patsy and Butch can be kings of the ashes.
the creator fucking said he died 💀💀
@@nuhwannnun Again, as it's even mentioned in this CR video, it was the original ending idea that Tony would walk into a meeting with NY and not come out, but it wasn't used. That's the only official mention by Chase of Tony dying. Truth is, whether we THINK it was Chase's intention or not in this final ending, both theories alive or dead are valid, based on what's presented on-screen, and you know it. It will never be solved.
Chase has already confirmed that Tony did in fact die at the end of the series so yes somebody obviously kills him, who and why no one will ever know because it was not written.
I don't mind the Butch, Paulie, Patsy theory. Paulie was a sneaky shit throughout the whole show and by the end was struggling to make money and wasn't getting any younger, and wasn't as big of an earner as the rest of the captains, but somehow managed to survive unscathed while everyone else was killed or turned informant. He cuts a deal with Butch to take over as the boss in NJ, never having to earn again, just gets all the money given to him as boss and he gets Patsy to go along, with a deal to make Patsy his underboss. Could be the reason why Paulie quickly changed his mind at the end when Tony wants him to run the Aprile crew and Paulie declines, Tony says "fine i'll give it to Patsy" and then Paulie says no i'll do it. Paulie knew what the plan was and didn't want Patsy having any 2nd thoughts or getting cold feet about Tony going if Tony was able to talk to him and offered him a promotion in the family, especially with Meadow being engaged to Patsy's son. Cause then if Patsy is satisfied and tells Paulie he's out of the deal and word somehow got out what they were really planning, Paulie would finally be a dead man.
If you guys know Mortal Kombat, it's actually a King Jerrod situation where half the cast did a conga line taking turns to whack him and take credit for it.
I always loved Pauliue character and I refused to be Paulie help set up Tony but now I am convinced Paulie and Pasty help Butchie takeout Tony, DAMN!!
Fascinating stuff. CineRanter, you really are one of the best Sopranos' commentators there is - the stugots.
Lots of red herrings in that last scene, and the guy in the Member's Only jacket has got to be the most casual hit man in the entire series.
People need to understand one small thing... The entire point is that over the course of 6 seasons, we watched Tony have horrendous interactions with hundreds of people, allowing for an almost impossible to count list of those who would want to murder him. And that is why the show ends the way it does. No one specific person actually killed him because no one specific person had any better reason than anyone else. The entire ending is symbolic of this. He was absolutely killed. But it is literally unimportant who killed him. That is why it shows HIS FACE last. Tony got himself killed, and that is objectively all that matters.
Yes but Gandolfini was notorious for going missing, threatening to quit so Chase wrote him out for last season. Character got worse ie killing Chris. Chase left it open for a movie
@@TheJUDGEMENTHOL ???? source??
This 100 percent. Tony, especially by the end of S6, has made so many enemies it's inevitable that he will be killed. For the show to end any other way would not have made any sense.
@@jormathon trust me Bro 🤣
Butch despised Tony. In fact he was the one who egged on Phil to try to kill him in the first place. Phil was reluctant. “Whack a boss?!” Butch replied “it’s been done before.” I can’t imagine curb stomping his friend right in front of him would have helped.
The truce had served its purpose when Phil was killed. That’s why Butch agreed to it. To get rid of Phil.
I don’t think Patsy was involved as his son was about to marry Meadow. It’s always the father of the bride who pays for the wedding. Patsy would have been throwing tens of thousands down the toilet by killing Tony before the wedding.
Patsy wanted to kill Tony for the murder of his twin brother.
If Patsy is made Boss of the family after Tony's death, the increase in income would pay for that wedding, and then some...
I remember seeing this when it aired, and people in the room with me and people the next day thought the power went out or something when it cut to black. I knew exactly what they were doing the second it happened, and I loved it.
Crazy how Gandolfini died of a heart attack just as TB and CM predicted in season 5
Christopher also predicted it in season 4 during his intervention
RIP Tony Sirico
Rest in Peace Tony Sirico. Such a great character he played. I find it weird and conflicting about Paulie being a sell out to Tony though. Supposedly, it was written into Sirico's contract, that he would "never betray the family." However, he was flirting with the idea of switching families with Carmine and Johnny Sack back in the day. So it's confusing.
I think it was written that he couldn't be a rat, i.e. snitch to the feds, not necessarily that he couldn't betray the family
A lot of people who would have retaliated/defended Tony are dead or incapacitated. With that weakness, it makes sense someone could've acted.
Sometimes the mobsters aren't clear on who may have called the hit on themselves, and this ending gave us a first-person idea of what that may feel like.
You nailed this.
Paulie and Patsie made a agreement with Butchie and Albie that both of their bosses would be taken out to end the war.
Killing a mob boss is an automatic death sentence. So whoever killed him might as well turn the gun on himself (unless he got an ok).
That's why Tony had to go. He killed a boss from one of the five families, he broke the rules first.
I just think we are all going to be sitting here in 10 years' time still still discussing what happened to Tony, and at the end of the day, we still won't know, clearly David chase deliberately left the ending ambiguous and open. It was either the Feds, a hit man, meadow, or a nobody walking through that door, and we will never know, a great ending to a great series.
Just as a note regarding the members only guy and the shooting. When Tony had his fever dream with Makazian and Annette Benning, Makazian told him while they were pissing(AKA "having a good tinkle"), "the gun wasn't behind the toilet." IMO, a clear reference of what was to come. There were prophetic aspects of the fever dream.
And the walls of time were broken down before in Tony's coma when he was told by that animal blundetto, "we don't talk like that here" in regards to being separate individuals. The Buddhists also explained that all is one. There is no separation.
So In that bathroom in the fever dream, Makazian was in a state where Tony was already dead and he mentioned an aspect of Tony's death.
Just saying, it is 100% absolute that Tony died at the end.
No doubt. The question is who and all of the foreshadowing points to Patsy/Paulie.
RIP Pauly WALNUTS
Doesn't matter. It was a great ending. Everthing was summed up perfectly.
Tony got it the same way Phil did. Nobodies sent by shadows
Tony ate his meal and went home .
@@angelvalle9963 yeah right 😆
We all know that it was Noah punching Tony’s lights out
Tony did die - Chase let it slip by accident in an interview.
The Russian survived but was brain damaged and unable to remember what had happened. This was going to be in an episode but it was cut