Robert Iler has only taken one post-Sopranos acting job, and it was to get out of jury duty
Robert Iler’s A.J. Soprano was a wonderfully written and performed portrait of rich white kid suburban ennui. But, despite making an indelible mark on TV history by pondering teenage existentialism aloud to his mob boss dad and asking if bad news translates to “no fucking ziti,” Iler has almost entirely left acting behind since The Sopranos’ 2007 finale.
Apparently, though, he’s willing to return to his old job if, as Iler explains in Sunday’s episode of Michael Imperioli and Steve Schirripa’s Talking Sopranos podcast, it gets him out of jury duty.
In the episode, Iler, who was 22 when The Sopranos ended, explains that he basically just wanted to chill out and play poker for a while after the series’ conclusion. Still, despite not seeking out other roles, he says that, “twice, to get out of jury duty, I did an episode of Law And Order.”
Iler tells Imperioli and Schirripa (The Sopranos’ Christopher Moltisanti and Bobby Baccalieri) that his role as A.J. was so “perfect” that he feels like taking other acting gigs would be a let down, but that sometimes he considers returning to TV, like when watching Ozark recently and thinking he “would really enjoy” working on a series like it.
The episode also includes Iler saying a big part of the reason he was cast was because creator David Chase thought hearing him say “fuck” as a 12-year old was so funny. He also relays that he hasn’t seen “80 percent of the [show]” because it’s too difficult to watch himself act or to see the late James Gandolfini, who Iler says was a “father figure” to him, play his on-screen dad.
Listen to the rest of Talking Sopranos’ most recent episode for more on what Iler’s been up to since the show ended. Or check out the show he co-hosts with his Sopranos sister Jamie-Lynn Sigler, Pajama Pants, which recently broadcast episodes featuring Imperioli—Uncle Chrissy himself—and that rat fuck, Jackie Jr. (played by the probably-actually-very-nice Jason Cerbone).
[via The Hollywood Reporter]
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