Longtime character actor who specialized in mobster roles also appeared in Goodfellas, Carlito’s Way, and Made
Vincent Pastore, the actor who portrayed mobster “Big Pussy” on The Sopranos, has died at the age of 80.
Pastore’s death was confirmed by the actor’s friend Steve Villano, who told the Hollywood Reporter that Pastore died in his sleep at his Bronx, New York home on Saturday.
Pastore, who claimed to be the son of a real-life wiseguy, entered the film industry in the late 1980s, landing small roles as a mob heavy in films like Martin Scorsese’s 1990 classic Goodfellas, 1991’s New Jack City, 1993’s Who’s the Man?, Woody Allen’s Manhattan Murder Mystery, alongside Al Pacino in 1993’s Carlito’s Way, and 1995’s The Jerky Boys: The Movie, as well as multiple appearances on Law & Order as a mobbed-up character.
In 1996, Pastore was cast as Gambino crime family mobster in the HBO biopic Gotti; that TV film — which also starred future Sopranos cast mates Tony Sirico, Frank Vincent, and Dominic Chianese — led to Pastore getting cast in the role of Salvatore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero on The Sopranos.
Pastore’s “Big Pussy” played a central role in The Sopranos’ first two seasons, as the character transformed from Tony Soprano’s trusted righthand man to FBI informant. The fan favorite character was ultimately gunned down on a boat and dumped at sea in the Season 2 finale, though Big Pussy reappeared a few more times over the course of the series in Tony Soprano’s dreams.
The actor, who racked up nearly 200 on-screen roles despite his late start to acting in his forties, would later appeared in similarly mob heavy roles in films like Made, Mickey Blue Eyes, and Revolver, as well as on TV shows like Blue Bloods, Wu-Tang: An American Saga, and Hawaii Five-0. One of his final roles as an as-himself appearance on Nathan Fielder and Benny Safdie’s The Curse.
