As people worldwide waited anxiously to discover Pope Francis’ replacement, one priest grabbed attention for looking strikingly similar to Tony Sirico, the celebrated actor famous for his performance in The Sopranos.
It turns out the lookalike was actually the actor’s older brother, Rev. Robert Sirico, an American-Italian clergyman who made the journey to Rome for the papal conclave. Page Six reports the siblings were raised in Brooklyn’s East Flatbush neighborhood and maintained a strong bond until Tony’s passing.
The actor, who portrayed Sopranos gangster Paul “Paulie Walnuts” Gualtieri, passed away on July 8, 2022, following years living with dementia. In the aftermath of Tony Sirico’s death, Robert Sirico offered a moving remembrance of his brother, sharing their final interaction.
“I felt that the end was approaching. So as we sat in a private area, I took out a Confessional Stole from my pocket. I gazed into his eyes and said, ‘How about that confession?'” the priest wrote, according to Page Six. “My brother agreed and I performed one of the most meaningful acts a priest can do for another human being. I absolved him of all of his sins.”
Sirico provided more insight into the papal conclave during a conversation with NY1 Spectrum News, revealing details about the voting system and potential timeline for the 133 cardinals to pick a new pope.
“What’s happening now is a voting [round] that gives cardinals a sense of who the serious contenders are, regarding the position one of them will secure,” he explained on Wednesday. “What was strange this evening, for those of us here in Rome, is that it took so long to complete one ballot. Now, I don’t know what that means… We simply don’t know because they’re under the seal.”
Sirico offered some information about the frontrunners in the papal conclave and predicted the process might stretch across several days.
“I doubt we’ll get [a decision] tomorrow,” he added. “The reason being we have many new cardinals who’ve never visited Rome and aren’t familiar with each other.”
But Sirico’s forecast proved wrong. On Thursday, the voting cardinals chose Chicago-born Cardinal Robert Prevost as the new pope. Prevost, who adopted the name Leo XIV, is the first American to ever hold the position.
