You infiltrated the Bonnano family over five years as an FBI undercover agent. How were you so comfortable in the Mafia world? I was very familiar with the Mob during my formative years. I grew up in an Italian household in an Italian neighbourhood in New Jersey, and I went to high school with the sons of mobsters.
But it must have been hard keeping your cool during fraught moments.
Well, I’m a very focused and mentally tough individual. Not everybody is geared towards being an undercover agent. Nobody can train you to be calm under fire. The only way you know is when the fire starts.
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Did they test you?
Sure. My undercover speciality was jewel thievery — I went to school to learn about gems, burglar alarms and safes — and they tested me by taking me on jobs.
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Donnie Brasco was based on your experiences working under cover. Did you get as close to the family as Johnny Depp did?
It was basically about 85 per cent true. But did the relationships get to the point where I felt sorry for them? No.
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How did you maintain that distance?
By knowing that these guys kill people and then talk about them when you’re having dinner that same night. That they kill relatives, and they would kill you if they knew that you were an informant, no matter how close you were. That’s what you keep in the back of your mind.
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You now work as a consultant for Mob dramas such as The Sopranos. What does your job entail?
My main input is the dialogue. Would a guy say this? And showing the guys how they should greet each other — you can pick out the pecking order from things like that, which often aren’t in the script.
What’s the least authentic thing about the shows you have worked on?
A Mob boss going to see a psychiatrist in The Sopranos. If the wiseguys found out in real life, they’d probably whack him.
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What’s the most important piece of advice you give actors?
I tell them to be themselves, don’t try to overdo the role. Everyone thinks that they’re Marlon Brando.
Who is the most convincing?
Several of the guys on The Sopranos were small-time gangsters before they became actors. Tony Sirico, who plays Paulie Walnuts — it’s no secret that he did a little time in jail. He had that street thing about him.
The Sopranos Season 6 is out to buy on DVD.
Interview by Ed Potton