The Sopranos Star Admits They "Felt Bad" About Their Character's Ending

11/27/2021 03:05 pm EST

It's been nearly 15 years since The Sopranos ended, but looking back, series star Lorraine Bracco says that she was upset about how her character, Dr. Jennifer Melfi, exited the series in its penultimate episode. In an appearance on the Talking Sopranos (via Deadline) podcast, Bracco spoke about her exit from the HBO series and says that would have liked for it to have been more "meaningful" than how it ended up playing out.

In Bracco's final appearance as Dr. Melfi, "The Blue Comet", the therapist bluntly cuts ties with longtime client, Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini) after Dr. Melfi is made aware of a study claiming sociopaths take advantage of talk therapy while at a dinner party with her colleagues. When she examines things for herself, she decides to cut ties with Tony in their next session without explanation, a scene that is her final one. It's an ending that didn't sit well with Bracco.

"I remember being upset [with] the direction that David [Chase] was bringing Melfi," Bracco said. "I just felt like he wanted me to get rid of [Tony]. I felt that he did it in a very abrupt way. I don't think that she should have done it that way. I would have liked for it to have been more meaningful. I think she cared for Tony. Even though he was a f-ck-up and he was never going to really straighten out. But I think she really cared for him. You don't spend seven years with someone and [then] discard them. I felt bad about that."

It's understandable that Bracco would be upset with how things ended with her character. Dr. Melfi had been part of the series since the pilot and some of the scenes between the therapist and Tony were a major, iconic aspect of the series. The abrupt termination of Tony as a client might seem a bit unusual or even out of character. Bracco went on to explain that she would have preferred to have had Melfi confront Tony and had Tony tell her off in the process, something that she feels would have been more powerful.

"Wouldn't that have been great for him to have said that to her? 'Fuck you. I am doing what I am doing. I don't care what you say to me. I don't care morally where you want to guide me.' I think that would have been powerful," Bracco said.

All seasons of The Sopranos are now streaming on HBO Max. 

Disclosure: ComicBook is owned by CBS Interactive, a division of Paramount. Sign up for Paramount+ by clicking here.