Who portrayed Paulie Walnuts?

Tony Sirico portrayed Paulie “Walnuts” Gualtieri on The Sopranos. Sirico played the volatile, superstitious, and often paranoid mob soldier throughout the series’ original run from 1999 to 2007.

Paulie is one of Tony Soprano’s longtime associates and a prominent member of the DiMeo crime family. He begins the series as a soldier and later becomes a captain. His nickname, “Walnuts,” comes from an earlier hijacking involving a truck believed to contain televisions but actually filled with walnuts.

Sirico brought unusual authenticity to the role. Before becoming an actor, he had a troubled early life and was repeatedly arrested; he later drew on that experience while playing many criminal characters. He had initially auditioned for Uncle Junior, but Dominic Chianese won that part, and creator David Chase offered Sirico the role of Paulie instead. Sirico died in 2022 at age 79.