Livia Soprano

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Livia Soprano

First appearance	The Sopranos (episode 1.01)
Last appearance	Proshai, Livushka (episode 3.02)
Statistics
Gender	Female
Age	70s
Occupation	Homemaker
Family	Quintina Blundetto (sister) A.J. Soprano (grandson) Meadow Soprano (granddaughter)
Spouse	Johnny Boy Soprano
Children	Tony Soprano (son) Janice Soprano (daughter) Barbara Soprano Giglione (daughter)
Portrayed by	Nancy Marchand
Created by	David Chase

Livia Soprano, played by Nancy Marchand, was the mother of Tony Soprano on the fictional HBO TV series, The Sopranos. A young Livia, played by Laila Robbins and later by Laurie J. Williams is sometimes seen in flashbacks.

She was named after and partly based on the empress Livia Drusilla Augusta, though David Chase has stated that the main inspiration for the character is his own mother.

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

Livia Soprano, the family matriarch, was scheming, manipulative, conniving and abusive. She seemingly derived little pleasure from life other than making the people around her miserable, especially her three children, Tony, Barbara (who moved away years ago) and Janice. She even tried to manipulate her brother-in-law, Junior, into putting out a hit on her own son after he tried to put her in a nursing home (or, as he maintained, a 'retirement community'). Tony's plot for revenge was foiled when Livia suffered a pseudo-stroke (said to be induced by repressed rage) and was taken into a hospital. When she got out, Tony settled for acting as if she was already dead, and attempted to end all contact and financial support. Tony's hostility toward Livia never diminished, although he did seem to be more accommodating of her toward the end of the second season after arriving at her house to visit Janice. In the second episode of the third season; "Proshai, Livushka" Tony is seen to be significantly more tolerant of Livia, although this is possibly down to his enforced responsibility of her thanks to Janice's departure at the end of the previous season and his brief meeting with her in the same episode ends with the pair arguing before Tony storms out of the house.

Based on her conversations with Tony, Dr. Melfi speculated that Livia might suffer from some form of borderline or narcissistic personality disorder.

After the second season, a storyline was planned where Livia would be called to testify against her son in court, giving evidence on stolen airline tickets she had received from him, but Marchand died in 2000, before it could be filmed. Existing footage and computer-generated imagery was used to create a last scene between Tony and Livia in episode 302, "Proshai, Livushka" in Season Three before the character too passed on. In the same episode, Artie Bucco experiences a brief flashback of a meeting with Livia, showing footage of a scene from a season one episode. Livia has nevertheless appeared as a young woman in several flashbacks since then, as well as being frequently referenced, with Tony still far from resolving his feelings towards her.

During the Sixth Season when Tony is comatose from a gunshot wound, he has a vivid dream that some have construed as being a rendition of purgatory. The dream ends with Tony being beckoned into a foreboding house by his dead cousin, Tony Blundetto and a woman who looks similar to Livia can be seen entering the house. It has been speculated this house may well represent the afterlife, specifically hell. Despite the importance of Livia in Tony's life, this is the only time in his many dreams she has manifested since her death.