It remains one of the most controversial and talked-about endings in the history of television. Some people loved it, others despised it, but the debate still remains, what happened to Tony Soprano at the end of The Sopranos? Did he or didn’t he die?

In an episode directed by Sopranos creator himself David Chase, Tony sits with his family at a Holsten’s ice cream parlour for some onion rings and listens to Journey’s Don’t Stop Believing , his daughter Meadow struggles to park her car outside to join her family, and a mysterious character in a members only jacket passes Tony on his way to the bathroom. With each jungle of the restaurant door opening, Tony glances up to take a look at who’s walked in. We can’t quite work out why, but tension is building, something is about to happen. And then, the door opens, Tony looks up, and we cut to black, just as the words of the song reach “don’t stop”. It was a revolutionary ending, the kind not seen on the small screen, to such an extent it had people checking their TVs to make sure nothing had gone wrong.

So what happened – did Tony simply see his daughter walk in and enjoy a family meal for the evening? Was he shot by the members only guy, with the sight of his daughter the very last thing he sees before he dies? The question as to whether Tony died or not at the end has been hotly debated for over 10 years, and surely the definitive answer can only come from the creator of the show David Chase?

See a video version of this podcast on my YouTube Channel:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EPN3l847tM

NEW PODCAST EVERY SUNDAY | WEDNESDAY | FRIDAY

Subscribe to my YouTube Channel for more content: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheBlah95 

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/user?u=8580945

Twitter: https://twitter.com/CineRanter

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices