Alessandro Nivola, star of the upcoming "Sopranos" prequel "The Many Saints of Newark", said that Tony Soprano, the protagonist in the iconic series, will be a central character in the film. Nivola told variety.com at the 20th anniversary of "The Sopranos" here on Wednesday, where the cast and creator David Chase held a panel discussion.

Nivola said Dickie Moltisani, whom he plays will be "the central character", and that the title references the name Moltisani, which means "many saints" in Italian. His character is the father of Christopher Moltisani (Michael Imperioli), who in the series is the protege of Tony Soprano, the Jersey mob boss portrayed by James Gandolfini.