--- description: "The final scene of The Sopranos raises a spiritual question that has no right or wrong answer" title: David Chase: 'Whether Tony Soprano Is Alive or Dead Is Not the Point' image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt409b05c5c9426b09/6986a136d0b6f22e03305daf/tony-soprano-pool.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # David Chase: 'Whether Tony Soprano Is Alive or Dead Is Not the Point' ## Video: A Look Back at James Gandolfini's Career [Watch (HLS stream): A Look Back at James Gandolfini's Career](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/gHYCIFlp.m3u8) (3:42)  _Published 2013-06-20. A look back at James Gandolfini's career_ by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 28, 2014 1:19 AM CUT  James Gandolfini as Tony Soprano James Gandolfini as Tony SopranoThe Kobal Collection/HBO by [Maya Rhodan](/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Aug 28, 2014 1:19 AM CUT On Wednesday, _Vox_ [reported](http://www.vox.com/2014/8/27/6006139/did-tony-die-at-the-end-of-the-sopranos "undefined") that _Sopranos_ creator David Chase had [finally answered](http://time.com/3197008/sopranos-tony-alive/ "undefined") a question burning in some fans’ minds about whether or not the lead character of his hit HBO series had died after its final scene. “He shook his head ‘no,’ and he said simply, ‘No he isn’t.’ And that was all,” reads the piece by Martha P. Nochimson, in dramatically enlarged lettering atop a black background, which pops up to fill the screen when you arrive at that point in the article. The site declared definitively that Tony Soprano was not dead, as many had theorized after the finale’s ambiguous fade-to-black last scene, and subsequent media reports drew similar conclusions. However, Chase issued a statement Wednesday, through a publicist, countering that his words had been misrepresented. According to the statement, published in a piece by TV critic Matt Zoller Seitz of [Vulture](http://www.vulture.com/2014/08/david-chase-statement-response-to-tony-soprano-didnt-die.html "undefined"), Chase said Wednesday: --- > “” --- Welp, that settles it. Go back to believing whatever you believed. Tony Soprano may or may not be dead. And Hello Kitty may or [may not be a cat](http://time.com/3197794/hello-kitty-not-a-cat/ "undefined"). 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