How Big Pussy held toughness and tenderness together

In the fictional series The Sopranos, Vincent Pastore’s Salvatore “Big Pussy” Bonpensiero was written to hold toughness and sensitivity at once. Pastore said David Chase had written the part for an actor who could play a tough guy while remaining sensitive, and he understood Pussy as a big-hearted man. That warmth was paired with the violent intensity of Tony Sirico’s Paulie Walnuts, which Pastore said Big Pussy balanced. The role could feel both threatening and humane because those qualities were written into the same performance.