Of all the memorable subplots on The Sopranos, the extended flirtation between Carmela Soprano (Edie Falco) and Furio Giunta (Federico Castelluccio) ranked among the most intriguing. And much of the intrigue revolved around practical concerns.
For starters, you have to wonder how such an affair would proceed. Would the pair be able to sneak around behind the back of Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini)? Given Tony’s general cluelessness on this matter, it’s possible. Problems would more likely arise from someone out to expose the couple.
But that picture of Furio and Annalisa happy together made you wonder if Furio hadn’t already tried out such a liaison with his boss’ wife back in Naples. As it played out, Carmela and Furio’s thing doesn’t go anywhere, though Furio did contemplate slicing Tony up in a plane propeller.
After Furio’s departure, Carmela used her feelings as a way to rile up Tony during an argument in the season 4 finale, “Whitecaps.” Looking back, Sopranos creator David Chase said he wished he would have had Carmela go one step further in that conversation.
‘Sopranos’ creator David Chase wished he would have had Carmela enrage Tony further in ‘Whitecaps’
By “Whitecaps,” Furio has left New Jersey and returned to Naples. Early on in the episode, Carmela fields a call from Tony’s former mistress, who informs Carmela that Tony has been sleeping with her (the mistress’) cousin. Carmela just about explodes after that, and asks to separate.
Later, Carmela wants to turn the tables on Tony. When he says she’s only in the marriage for the material wealth, she calls him “hateful” and tells him a little story. “The last year, I have been dreaming and fantasizing and in love with Furio,” she says. That gets Tony’s attention.
At first, he thinks it’s a joke. But she continues. “Every morning when he’d come to pick you up, I would look forward to it all night long. In bed, next to you,” she says, as Tony realizes it’s real. “[Furio] would ring the doorbell. I felt like my heart would come out of my chest. He would smile, and we would talk. “
Then Carmela comes to the punch line. “Then you would come down the stairs. And I felt probably like someone who is terminally ill, and somehow they managed to forget it for a minute. And then it all comes back.” Tony flips out at that point. But Chase thought Carmela could have gone further.
Carmela Soprano would say she masturbated to Furio if Chase could do ‘Whitecaps’ over
On the Talking Sopranos podcast, Chase walked through some of his memories of creating and producing the show all those years ago. He mentioned “The Ride” as one of the episodes he really thought had something at the time.
Upon mention of “Whitecaps,” Chase said he recalled the shoot. “I remember being on the stage at, like, 2:30 in the morning when [Gandolfini and Falco] did that,” he said. “It was just unbelievable.” But that got him thinking about a way he could have done it differently.
“What she should have said — instead of ‘I have been dreaming and wishing and … about Furio’ — she should have said, to get [Tony], ‘I have been dreaming and masturbating and blah blah blah,” Chase said. “But it’s too late.”
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