Lillo Brancato

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Lillo Brancato, Jr. (born March 30, 1976 in Bogotá , Colombia ) is an American actor . He played the role of Calogero Anello in Robert De Niro's directorial debut In the Streets of the Bronx . He later played Matthew Bevilaqua in the series The Sopranos . In December 2005, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison, from which he served eight years.

Early life

Brancato was born and adopted in Bogotá when he was four months old. He grew up in an Italian-American environment in Yonkers, New York . Brancato went to the Mount Saint Michael Academy Catholic school .

Career

Brancato was discovered by a talent scout who noticed his resemblance to Robert De Niro . De Niro was preparing the film In the Streets of the Bronx and was looking for actors to play his son between the ages of eight and seventeen. Brancato was a fan of De Niro and impressed the Scout with an imitation of Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver . He got the main role and convinced the leading actors Robert De Niro and Chazz Palminteri . He then played minor roles and got the role of Matthew Bevilaqua in the series The Sopranos . In an interview Brancato gave in prison, he said he was high while filming In the Streets of the Bronx . At that time he used marijuana . Chazz Palminteri and Robert De Niro had already warned him back then that he should stay away from false friends and drugs. Brancato says he used harder drugs like cocaine and heroin in the years that followed.

Arrests and imprisonment

On June 10, 2005, Brancato was arrested by officers from the Yonkers Police Department for carrying heroin.

On December 10, 2005, Brancato was arrested by New York Police in the Bronx on suspicion of murdering 28-year-old police officer Daniel Enchautegui. Enchautegui was at home and not on duty when he surprised Brancato and his accomplice Steven Armento when they broke into an empty house next to his home. Enchautegui arrested the intruders and called for reinforcements. Armento drew a gun and fired at Enchategui, whereupon an exchange of fire broke out in which Enchautegui was fatally wounded; he died shortly after being admitted to the Jacobi Medical Center . Armento and Brancato were arrested by police near the scene, both with multiple gunshot wounds and in critical condition.

The 48-year-old Armento, father of Brancato's girlfriend and with several previous convictions for burglary, was sentenced to life imprisonment for murder without the possibility of parole. Since Brancato could not be proven to have known that Armento was carrying a gun, he was only found guilty of attempted break-in and sentenced to ten years in prison. The sister of the murdered police officer criticized the verdict and called Brancato a murderer. His lawyer found the verdict too harsh (the judge could sentence him to between 3½ and 15 years in prison) and criticized the influence of Mayor Michael Bloomberg . Brancato was initially held in the Oneida Correctional Facility in Rome, New York , and then in the Hudson Correctional Facility. He was paroled in December 2013.

Life after imprisonment

Brancato, who describes himself as clean, starred in The Bronx Dahmer after his release in 2015 .

Filmography

year Movie role Remarks
1993 A Bronx Tale Calogero "C" Anello (aged 17) Film debut Brancato's
directorial debut Robert De Niros
1994 Mr. Bill Pvt. Donnie Benitez
1995 Crimson Tide - In deepest danger Petty Officer Third Class Russell Vossler
1998 Public enemy No. 1 Young worker
Provocateur Chris Finn
1999 The Florentine Pretty
2000 Mambo Café Weasel
Blue moon Pete
The Sopranos Matthew Bevilaqua Episodes (2nd season)
"Guy Walks into a Psychiatrist's Office…"
"Do Not Resuscitate"
"The Happy Wanderer"
"Full Leather Jacket"
"From Where to Eternity"
"Bust Out"
Table One Johnnie
2001 In the Shadows Jimmy Pierazzi
'R Xmas The husband
Sticks Lenny
2002 The real deal Samy Saxo
Pluto Nash Larry
2004 Downtown: A Street Tale Lenny
2005 Searching for Bobby D. Bobby
Slingshot DJ
2015 The Bronx Dahmer Joey First film after imprisonment

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Inmate Population Information Search , from the New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision . July 10, 2012.
  2. ↑ a b Murder trial scheduled for 'Sopranos' actor ( English ) In: International Herald Tribune . November 8, 2008. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
  3. ↑ Lillo Brancato Biography (1976-) . Film Reference.com. Retrieved September 26, 2013.
  4. ^ Fishman, Steve: The Lost Soprano (English) . In: New York , March 6, 2006. Retrieved September 19, 2013. 
  5. ^ Fishman, Steve: The Lost Soprano ( English ) In: New York . February 27, 2006. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
  6. ↑ Steve Fishman: The Lost Soprano (English) . In: New York Magazine , March 6, 2006, p. 5. Retrieved September 19, 2013. 
  7. ^ The Officer Down Memorial Page: Detective Daniel Enchautegui ( English ) The Officer Down Memorial Page. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
  8. ↑ Michael Wilson: Did Suspects Know Victim Was an Officer? Police Say Statements Differ ( English ) In: New York Times . December 13, 2005. Retrieved September 19, 2013.
  9. ^ Sewell Chan, Mathew R. Warren: Ex-Actor Acquitted of Officer's Murder . In: New York Times , December 22, 2008. 
  10. ↑ a b John Eligon: 10-Year Sentence for 'Sopranos' Actor (English) . In: New York Times , January 9, 2009. 
  11. ↑ 'Sopranos' Alum Lillo Brancato Released From Prison After 8 Years ( English ) The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
personal data
SURNAME Brancato, Lillo
BRIEF DESCRIPTION US-American actor
DATE OF BIRTH March 30, 1976
PLACE OF BIRTH Bogotá , Colombia