Find out why they are the exception to their rule.

Michael Gandolfini reveals how he and Cooper Hoffman feel about nepo babies

Find out why they are the exception to their rule.

By Derek Lawrence

Derek Lawrence

Derek Lawrence is a former associate editor at **. He left EW in 2022.

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April 30, 2026 6:01 p.m. ET

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Michael Gandolfini; Cooper Hoffman. Credit:

Michael Loccisano/WireImage; Mat Hayward/Getty

- Michael Gandolfini shared how he and Cooper Hoffman view nepo babies.

- The duo have a joke about why they are the exceptions.

- Gandolfini said that the duo hope to do a movie together.

Michael Gandolfini and Cooper Hoffman have officially weighed in with their surprising stance on nepo babies.

The sons of the legendary late actors James Gandolfini and Philip Seymour Hoffman both broke out in 2021 films that featured a connection to their fathers, but the duo like to joke that they are the exception to their anti-nepo baby rule.

"Me and Cooper Hoffman have this bit where we're like, 'We gotta get rid of those nepo babies,'" Gandolfini said with a laugh on *The Downside with Gianmarco Soresi*. "And then when someone says, 'Aren't you guys,' it's like, 'If one of your parents is dead, it's fine.'"

James Gandolfini and Philip Seymour Hoffman in 2004.

Bryan Bedder/Getty

Michael and Cooper's bond extends past just their sense of humor. Their fathers passed away within months of each other when both were still young. Shortly after getting into acting, Michael's first major role came in *The Soprano*s prequel movie, 2021's *The Many Saints of Newark*, playing Tony Soprano, the iconic character that his father first brought to life. That same year, Cooper's acting debut was as the lead of *Licorice Pizza*, the coming-of-age dramedy from his dad's longtime collaborator Paul Thomas Anderson.

"If someone's not calling me my dad's name, they're calling me Cooper Hoffman, and they're like, 'I loved you in *Licorice Pizza*,'" Michael said. "So we had just been hearing about each other so much, and we met at a party, and he came over, and I grabbed his face, and we hugged, and we've been like two peas in a pod."

Cooper Hoffman 'would love' advice from his late dad Philip Seymour Hoffman: 'He's my favorite actor'

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Michael previously shared with *EW** *how "proud" he was of his father when watching *Soprano*s in preparation for *Saints of Newark*, and Cooper has talked about his dad being "my favorite actor" and how much he'd love to still have him and his advice around.

"I love Cooper very, very much; we're very close," Michael shared. "It is very special to know him. We just see things similarly. We laugh so hard about things that no one else can really relate to."

Gandolfini revealed that the two "really want" to do a movie together, going as far as sending each other scripts. Maybe it's time to remake 1993's *Money for Nothing*, the one film both their fathers starred in.

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