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Playing a young mafioso on HBO's hit series ''The Sopranos'' (Sundays, 9 p.m.) may sound like an irresistible chance to wear thousand dollar suits and pack sizable heat. But for Michael Imperioli -- who plays crew leader Tony Soprano's (James Gandolfini) hotheaded nephew, Christopher -- it meant simply learning to drive.
A native New Yorker, 32 year old Imperioli (whose 25 film career includes ''Goodfellas,'' ''Malcolm X,'' and three other Spike Lee movies) had always relied on subways and cabs. But because ''Sopranos'' is about a Mob family in highway clogged suburban New Jersey, Imperioli was told to do what most teens crave: drive the family car. The first step was lessons. ''The instructor would come pick me up at my house at 12 noon and say, 'OK, drive,''' Imperioli tells EW.com, ''and I would say, 'Now? On a weekday in the midst of all this midtown traffic?' I thought it was crazy.''
He survived, and earned his learner's permit in time for his big driving scenes -- sort of. ''During one take, Jimmy [Gandolfini] and I were backing up from having just finished beating someone up,'' Imperioli says, ''and I veered off course and hit a tree, smashing the Lexus I was driving.'' Luckily, there was an identical Lexus ready for just such an emergency. ''People on the set laughed after the fact,'' says Imperioli, ''but when it happened, everyone was dead silent.'' The actor finally earned his license last summer, and HBO picked up ''Sopranos'' for 12 episodes. Now Imperioli's character concentrates on hitting something other than a tree.
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