The Sopranos’ creator David Chase has shared his pessimism about the television industry, claiming the golden age that he helped usher in is over after 25 years.
In an interview with The Times, Chase, 78, claimed show creators are once again being asked to dumb things down, as viewers increasingly want to be able to follow their content while also looking down at their phones.
Chase, whose HBO masterpiece is widely credited for paving the way for other critically-acclaimed shows like Mad Men and Breaking Bad, said the television industry is now where it was 25 years ago.
‘That was a 25-year blip’ Chase said of the last two decades of scripted TV. ‘ I’m not talking only about The Sopranos, but a lot of other hugely talented people out there who I feel increasingly bad for.’
Chase added: ‘We’re going back to where I was… They’re going to have commercials… And I’ve already been told to dumb it down.’
The TV legend said executives have already told him that a show he’s working on about a prostitute forced into witness protection is ‘too complex.’
‘Who is this all really for?’ Chase bemoaned to the The Times. ‘I guess the stockholders?’
Chase then explained: ‘As the human race goes on, we are more into multitasking. We seem to be confused and audiences can’t keep their minds on things, so we can’t make anything that makes too much sense, takes our attention and requires an audience to focus.
‘And as for streaming executives? It is getting worse. We’re going back to where we were.’
Chase spoke to The Times to note the 25th anniversary of The Sopranos’ premiere, but the writer said a funeral would be more appropriate than a celebration.
‘It is a funeral,’ Chase said of the era of critically-acclaimed shows filling up TV screens. ‘Something is dying.’
The stars of HBO show were out in force last Wednesday night when they attended the hit show’s 25th anniversary party in Little Italy, New York.
Lorraine Bracco, 69, who played Tony Soprano’s long-suffering psychiatrist, Jennifer Melfi, was one of the stars in attendance.
Lorraine was seen posing with casting director Georgianne Walken, wife of Christopher Walken, who enjoyed minor roles in the original series, which was broadcast on HBO from January 10, 1999, to June 10, 2007.
Gandolfini’s son Michael also hit the event with his girlfriend, Australian actress Mia Healey.
The Sopranos ran for six seasons from 1999 to 2007, culminating with a controversial ending that is still discussed nearly two decades later.
HBO announced earlier this week that they are releasing an exclusive 25th Anniversary Collection including over five hours of new content.
The collection will include 15 deleted scenes, three of which have never been released.
There will also be over five hours of behind-the-scenes featurette content available to stream on Max, along with the entire six-season run.
