Too fat? Fuggetaboutit!

James Gandolfini was surprised to get the role that has made him a household name.

13:04 23 September 2004

Actor James Gandolfini has revealed that he had doubts about getting the lead in hit drama The Sopranos.

Speaking in an interview with a US network this week, Gandolfini said he thought the lead character, Tony Soprano, would be a "suave, good looking Mafioso guy".

After the massive success of the show it is impossible to imagine anyone other than the rough and ready Gandolfini playing Newark's most feared mobster.

"I got the script and I remember reading it and I was laughing out loud, and I said: 'There's no way I will be able to do this'," he said during an interview with Inside The Actors Studio.

The Sopranos is a multi-Emmy award winning drama following the fortunes of mafia families in Newark's Little Italy.