Christopher Moltisanti

Lore & Background

Christopher's journey begins in Season 1 when he 'makes his bones' by killing Emil Kolar to settle a dispute over Triborough Towers garbage routes. He initially plans to hide the body in a dumpster, but Salvatore 'Big Pussy' Bonpensiero advises against it to reduce heat. The murder haunts Christopher's dreams, forcing him to dig up and move Kolar's corpse twice. In Season 2, his subordinates Matthew Bevilaqua and Sean Gismonte ambush him outside a diner to gain favor with Richie Aprile. Christopher survives the shooting but is clinically dead for about a minute; during his recovery, he claims to have seen himself in hell or purgatory. He kills Gismonte in self-defense while Bevilaqua escapes, only to be found later by Richie Aprile's confidantes and executed by Tony and Big Pussy. By Season 3, Christopher finally becomes a made man, inheriting a betting shop from Paulie Gualtieri, which leads to friction over payments until the Pine Barrens incident forces an uneasy truce.

In Their Own Story

In Season 5, Christopher discovers his fiancée Adriana La Cerva is working as an informant for the FBI and wants him to enter Witness Protection. Valuing loyalty over love, he reports her to Tony, who orders Silvio Dante to kill her. Following this trauma, Christopher marries Kelli Lombardo and they have a daughter named Caitlyn. However, his interest in his new wife soon wanes as he grows disillusioned with the family business. He attempts to distance himself by making a film and trying to become a Hollywood screenwriter. While the movie achieves modest success, Christopher becomes irritated with his business partner J.T. Dolan and eventually murders him when Dolan refuses to listen to details of past murders. His substance abuse causes him frequent attendance at AA meetings and rehabilitation centers. Despite Tony's desire for Christopher to succeed, he doubts his loyalty due to Christopher's immaturity and drug problems, fearing he will turn state's evidence.

Reader's Guide

Christopher Moltisanti's path is defined by a constant struggle between his ambition to lead the family into the 21st century and his inability to overcome personal demons. In Season 6, Tony promotes him to captain, telling him he will lead the family forward. However, Christopher's drug use leads to a serious car crash while driving Tony home; he is high at the time. Upon seeing that Caitlyn's baby seat was completely destroyed in the accident and realizing she would have been killed had she been in the car, Tony decides he has had enough. In the series finale, Tony suffocates the badly injured Christopher, finally ridding himself of his troublesome 'nephew.' Earlier attempts to kill Tony occurred when Christopher, enraged by rumors of an affair between Adriana and Tony, pulled a gun on him; he was spared only after Tony Blundetto interceded. His relationship with Paulie Gualtieri remained tense throughout, culminating in multiple clashes even after the Pine Barrens truce.

Did You Know?

• Christopher is a first cousin once removed of Tony's wife Carmela, making him a second cousin to her children.
• During his coma in Season 2, Christopher claimed he saw himself in either hell or purgatory and received a warning that 'three o'clock' would be significant.
• Christopher killed J.T. Dolan, his film business partner, because Dolan refused to listen to details of murders Christopher had witnessed.
• In Season 1, Junior Soprano ordered a mock execution for Christopher after he hijacked trucks under Junior's protection.
• Christopher grew up in the Rochelle Park section of Paramus, New Jersey, next to the Westfield Garden State Plaza.