“He’s not a bully”: Tulsa King Showrunner Confirms Why Sylvester Stallone’s Dwight Can Never be Tony Soprano
Despite being in the mob business, the Tulsa King writer clarifies why Sylvester Stallone’s Dwight is nothing like Tony.
Notable for penning some of the finest pieces of television with The Sopranos and Boardwalk Empire, writer Terence Winter is once again excelling in the small screen with Sylvester Stallone’s Tulsa King. Although on the surface level, Stallone’s Dwight and James Gandolfini’s Tony Soprano might not seem much different, given their history with the mob, this couldn’t be further from the truth.
Irrespective of their criminal history, writer and executive producer Winter detailed why the two are substantially different.
Sylvester Stallone’s Dwight Is More Rational and Reasonable Per Writer
While The Sopranos doesn’t shy away from highlighting Tony’s sociopathic tendencies, in Dwight’s case, Terence Winter added that he’s more of a rational and reasonable guy instead of being a bully.
Opposed to Tony‘s more thuggish persona, which fits the bill of a traditional gangster, the writer stressed that Dwight, on the other hand, is good at heart and will be “respectful to people until he feels that they don’t deserve that”.
I think Dwight, at heart, is a rational, reasonable guy. He’s not a bully. I mean, a lot of mob guys in real life are bulls in china shops. I think Dwight in general, will be respectful to people until he feels that they don’t deserve that, and then the other shoe drops. He’s thoughtful in the sense that he actually thinks about the world. He’s had plenty of time in prison to reflect on his choices. And he’s incredibly well read. He has a much broader base of knowledge about the world than most gangsters.
The writer further added “in a different time and place”, Dwight would have grown up to become a businessman, even if he still was “a little rough around the edges”.
Tulsa King Allowed Sylvester Stallone To Highlight One of His Most Underrated Skills
One of the major aspects that makes Dwight stand out in comparison to other mob bosses in fiction is the character’s humorous and humane side. Moreover, the Rambo star had a blast with his Tulsa King counterpart, thanks to the emphasis on big “monologues and chunks of comedy”, as it allowed Sylvester Stallone to excel at dialogue delivery.
One of the first things he said when we met is that people know him as Rocky or Rambo and that ‘I don’t think people even know that I can actually talk.’ So the idea that he has these big monologues and chunks of comedy, it was really a pleasure for him. When he read the pilot, he said, ‘This fits me like a tailor-made suit. This is who I am in real life — if I were a mobster.’
Despite not being similar deep down, both Dwight and Tony are a testament to the Tulsa King showrunner’s chops in terms of crafting morally troubled individuals.
