It is often the case that an actor finds worldwide fame and love and jumps right into a totally different project, potentially ruining their career. This was the case for The Sopranos star Drea de Matteo.
The Sopranos found worldwide fame and critical acclaim upon its release in 1999. Drea de Matteo portrayed the role of Adriana La Cerva in the iconic show which ended in 2005.
Drea de Matteo Joined Matt LeBlanc’s Joey After The Sopranos
The Sopranos was at its peak in the late 90s and the early 2000s. The show ran for 6 seasons before concluding in 2005 with a banger finale. Although the show ended, Drea de Matteo’s troubles were only beginning.
Without a backup plan, de Matteo wanted to work again. That’s when she was offered the role of Gina Tribbiani in the 2004 American sitcom Joey. Many people don’t know that after FRIENDS, Matt LeBlanc starred in a solo spin-off titled Joey. The show was a disastrous failure.
Drea de Matteo was desperate and she joined the doomed sitcom after The Sopranos. However, in an interview with NME, the actress talked about how she didn’t capitalize on her American accent enough.
I felt down – it was very scary. I played a New Yorker with a very heavy accent and that’s the kiss of death for someone who wants to do other things. I jumped right into Joey – which I didn’t think was a smart move but everybody pushed me into it.
She further continued,
Where I’m playing Adriana but as a cartoon. The reason people loved Adriana was because she wasn’t a caricature, she was real.
What she means by that is de Matteo portrayed a similar role in Joey as her role in The Sopranos but her role in Joey was very comedic and not serious. However, this isn’t the only thing that the actress had to say about the spin-off.
After FRIENDS ended, Joey Tribbiani went to Hollywood to pursue his dream of acting. As usual, things go sideways in every episode but midway through the second season, the show was canceled. The Sons of Anarchy actress revealed that she regretted the decision every day.
Drea de Matteo Shouldn’t Have Joined Joey
Although no one can really blame her, de Matteo feels that she shouldn’t have rushed into things after The Sopranos ended. Joining the 2004 American sitcom caused a dip in de Matteo’s career.
As the interview further continued, the actress talked about how she regretted the decision of joining Joey every day. The show wasn’t all that good and it put a scar on her career for quite a while.
Looking back, I think: ‘Silly girl, you had a talent for that. You should have maximised on that accent, being from Queens, being a New Yorker.’ But instead I wanted to work against it and it didn’t work in my favour.
She also regretted not using her accent enough even though it would have surely helped her. On the professional side of things, de Matteo was last seen in an episode of Mayans M.C.
With Matt LeBlanc, Andrea Anders, and, Drea de Matteo in leading roles, Joey received a rating of 6/10 on IMDB and a meager 50% on Rotten Tomatoes.
