Tony Sirico, who played Peter Paul “Paulie Walnuts” Gualtieri in The Sopranos, died today, his family announced. The actor would have turned 80 this month.
“It is with great sadness, but with incredible pride, love and a whole lot of fond memories, that the family of Gennaro Anthony ‘Tony’ Sirico wishes to inform you of his death on the morning of July 8, 2022,” the family said in a statement.
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No cause of death has been provided but Sirico has been in failing health for the past several years as he battled dementia. He died at an assisted living facility in Fort Lauderdale, FL.
Sirico starred as fan-favorite henchman Paulie Walnuts on The Sopranos for the series’ entire six-season run on HBO. He was supposed to be in David Chase’s prequel movie, 2021’s The Many Saints of Newark, but his health prevented him from reprising his role.
He shared two SAG Awards for Drama Ensemble and seven total noms for his role as the violent, devoted, menacing and rather simple Paulie Walnuts, a capo whose steely glower and quick temper made him a tough guy to fear – but also to root for. Famous for his trademark slicked-back hair with two-tone wings, the character was known for his fierce loyalty to boss Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini, who died in 2013) and his willingness to take on any and all dirty work. Belying his hard exterior, Paulie also was something of a mama’s boy.
Sirico brought authenticity to the role with his background of a street guy who was arrested 28 times and served 20 months at New York’s notorious Sing Sing prison.
The Sopranos executive producer Terence Winter said in a Deadline interview tied to the show’s 20th anniversary that he remembered Sirico as Junior Sirico, which was his name back in the day. “He was this scary mob guy… he was the real deal.”
Sirico originally auditioned for the role of Junior. After three rounds of tests, The Sopranos creator David Chase called him to tell him that he had another character for him, Paulie Walnuts.
“I say, who is he? David says, ‘You’ll like him.’ And boy, let me tell you, I loved him,” Sirico said in the same Deadline interview. “I am still Paulie. I can’t go home no more. I am Paulie, till I pass,”
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The Sopranos became a sensation soon after its launch in January 1999 on HBO, quickly becoming a water-cooler show and scoring four Emmys. The New Jersey-set mob tale would be Emmy-nominated for Outstanding Drama Series for each of its seven installments – its final Season 6 was split into two parts – but won the prize only in 2008, for its final run. The Sopranos would rack up 21 Emmys during its run, though Sirico never was nominated for Supporting Actor.
Additionally, Sirico played gangsters in a number of films, including Tony Stacks in Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas. He also was mobbed up for the features Mob Queen, Love and Money, Fingers, The One Man Jury, Defiance and The Last Fight.
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Sirico was born July 29, 1942, in New York. His first confirmed role in film was as an extra in the 1974 film Crazy Joe. He also played policemen in the films Dead Presidents and Deconstructing Harry.
