The Many Saints Of Newark Final Shot Was Added Much Later

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The Many Saints of Newark's final shot was added much later during reshoots, according to the film's cinematographer, Kramer Morgenthau. Written by the original series creator David Chase and helmed by frequent director Alan Taylor, The Sopranos prequel film was released in theaters and on HBO Max on the first of the month. Though it underperformed at the box office, which is still recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic, Many Saints of Newark was huge streaming success that also resulted in a record-breaking spike in viewership for the series that inspired it.

Set decades before The Sopranos, Many Saints follows a young Tony Soprano (Michael Gandolfini) and his mobster mentor, Dickie Moltisanti (Alessandro Nivola). The prequel film also brings back Livia (Vera Farmiga), Johnny Boy (Jon Bernthal), Junior (Corey Stoll), Paulie (Billy Magnussen), and Silvio (John Magaro), all characters who were introduced in The Sopranos and now played by younger actors. Frequent mob movie star, Ray Liotta, turns heads in a dual role as Hollywood Dick and Sally Moltisanti, along with Leslie Odom Jr. as Harold McBrayer, the film's primary antagonist.

RELATED:Many Saints Of Newark: Dickie's Uncle Sal Isn't Real - Theory Explained

Now, in an exclusive from SlashFilm, cinematographer Kramer Morgenthau reveals that The Many Saints of Newark's final shot was actually added much later during reshoots. Morgenthau explains that the final scene was originally shot on location at a real funeral home, but then almost a year later, they decided to add the pinky swear, which was then filmed on a sound stage against a green screen. Read Morgenthau's explanation below:

It was added almost a year later. Due to global pandemics and things like that, it was much, much later. The conversations about the mood and the lighting were established already in the first shoot, so we're rebuilding it for the reshoot. And it's a funeral home and it had a very Gordon Willis Godfather-y minimalist single source vibe. Once Alan saw what I was doing, that was end of conversation. It was build an atmosphere where it's a mob funeral in New Jersey in 1967. Go press that button and build that, come on. Make it happen. It was just instinctual, and it was a location, a real funeral home that we shot at originally. And then, the pinky rebuild was against green screen on a sound stage.

Since Dickie's murder was mentioned numerous times throughout The Sopranos, it wasn't surprising that fans got to see it unfold in Many Saints, though the manner in which it happened certainly was. The film's final scene takes place at his funeral ,and as Tony is viewing his body, he imagines Dickie raising his hand up for one last pinky swear, a callback to an earlier moment which takes on greater significance as his place in the DiMeo crime family is solidified.

It would be difficult to know this final shot was filmed entirely in front of a green screen just by looking at it, a testament to Taylor, Morgenthau, and the VFX team's work. It would also be difficult to imagine the ending if the pinky swear wasn't added later on, as it acts as a brilliant bookend to The Many Saints of Newark. Furthermore, it also leaves the door open for a Many Saints sequel if Chase decides to go that route, though he is very protective of The Sopranos property.

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