Lillo Brancato Jr. (born Saul Rodriguez; August 30, 1976) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Calogero “C” Anello in
Robert De Niro
Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...
's 1993 directorial debut, ''
A Bronx Tale
''A Bronx Tale'' is a 1993 American coming-of-age crime film directed by and starring Robert De Niro in his directorial debut and produced by Jane Rosenthal, adapted from Chazz Palminteri's 1989 play of the same name. It tells the coming of ...
.'' He also portrayed
Matthew Bevilaqua
This is a list of fictional characters from the HBO series '' The Sopranos'', its video game '' The Sopranos: Road to Respect'' and its prequel film '' The Many Saints of Newark.''
Main characters Cast table
Main character biographies Tony Sop ...
, a young mobster on ''
The Sopranos
''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based American Mafia, Italian-American mobster, portraying h ...
''.
Brancato was arrested on December 10, 2005, in the Bronx for the murder of police officer Daniel Enchautegui, who was at home and off-duty at the time of his death, during a botched burglary. Brancato was charged with second-degree murder, and his trial began on November 17, 2008. On December 22, 2008, a jury found him not guilty of murder, but found him guilty of first-degree attempted burglary. On January 9, 2009, a judge sentenced him to 10 years in prison. On December 31, 2013, he was released on parole.
Early life
Brancato was born Saul Rodriguez in
Bogotá
Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...
, Colombia, on August 30, 1976.
[Inmate Population Information Search](_blank)
from the website of the . Retrieved on July 10, 2012. Adopted when he was four months old, he was raised by Italian-American parents, Lillo Brancato Sr., a construction worker, and Domenica, an
electrolysist, in
Yonkers, New York
Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enu ...
. Brancato studied at
Mount Saint Michael Academy
Mount Saint Michael Academy is an all-boys' Roman Catholic high school in the Wakefield neighborhood of the New York City borough of the Bronx. The school's campus also borders the city of Mount Vernon in neighboring Westchester County and is ad ...
. His adoptive brother, Vinny, briefly worked as a fashion model and now works as a Yonkers civil servant.
Although he was born in Colombia, Brancato has said, "I consider myself Italian. I was raised to eat
pasta
Pasta (, ; ) is a type of food typically made from an unleavened dough of wheat flour mixed with water or eggs, and formed into sheets or other shapes, then cooked by boiling or baking. Rice flour, or legumes such as beans or lentils, are som ...
." Brancato was discovered in 1992, while swimming at New York's
Jones Beach, by a talent scout who noticed Brancato's resemblance to
Robert De Niro
Robert Anthony De Niro Jr. ( , ; born August 17, 1943) is an American actor. Known for his collaborations with Martin Scorsese, he is considered to be one of the best actors of his generation. De Niro is the recipient of various accolades ...
.
Brancato was a fan of De Niro and impressed the scout with an impression of
Travis Bickle
Travis Bickle is a fictional character and the anti-hero protagonist of the 1976 film ''Taxi Driver'' directed by Martin Scorsese. The character was created by the film's screenwriter Paul Schrader. He is played by Robert De Niro, who received an ...
from ''
Taxi Driver
''Taxi Driver'' is a 1976 American film directed by Martin Scorsese, written by Paul Schrader, and starring Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Leonard Harris, and Albert Brooks. Set in a decaying and ...
''. This won him the role of De Niro's son in ''
A Bronx Tale
''A Bronx Tale'' is a 1993 American coming-of-age crime film directed by and starring Robert De Niro in his directorial debut and produced by Jane Rosenthal, adapted from Chazz Palminteri's 1989 play of the same name. It tells the coming of ...
''.
Career
Brancato acted in three films in the mid-1990s, prior to joining the cast of ''
The Sopranos
''The Sopranos'' is an American Crime film#Crime drama, crime drama television series created by David Chase. The story revolves around Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini), a New Jersey-based American Mafia, Italian-American mobster, portraying h ...
''. In ''
A Bronx Tale
''A Bronx Tale'' is a 1993 American coming-of-age crime film directed by and starring Robert De Niro in his directorial debut and produced by Jane Rosenthal, adapted from Chazz Palminteri's 1989 play of the same name. It tells the coming of ...
'' (1993), he played the main character Calogero 'C' Anello, a teenager torn between his father and a mob boss who befriended him as a child (according to ''
New York Magazine
''New York'' is an American biweekly magazine concerned with life, culture, politics, and style generally, and with a particular emphasis on New York City. Founded by Milton Glaser and Clay Felker in 1968 as a competitor to ''The New Yorker'', ...
'', Brancato earned $25,000 ($ today) for the role).
He further appeared in ''
Renaissance Man
A polymath ( el, πολυμαθής, , "having learned much"; la, homo universalis, "universal human") is an individual whose knowledge spans a substantial number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific pro ...
'' (1994), followed by a minor but climactic role as a radio operator in ''
Crimson Tide'' (1995).
In the second season of ''The Sopranos'', which
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
broadcast in 2000, Brancato starred as
Matthew Bevilaqua
This is a list of fictional characters from the HBO series '' The Sopranos'', its video game '' The Sopranos: Road to Respect'' and its prequel film '' The Many Saints of Newark.''
Main characters Cast table
Main character biographies Tony Sop ...
, a young mobster associated with
Tony Soprano
Anthony John Soprano is a fictional character and the antihero protagonist in the HBO television drama series ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2007), portrayed by James Gandolfini. Soprano is a member of the American Mafia, Italian-American Mafia and, ...
's crime syndicate. Bevilaqua first appeared in the second-season premiere, "
Guy Walks into a Psychiatrist's Office...", and appeared in five more episodes. The character was murdered in "
From Where to Eternity
"From Where to Eternity" is the 22nd episode of the HBO original series ''The Sopranos'' and the ninth of the show's second season. It was written by Michael Imperioli and directed by Henry J. Bronchtein, and originally aired on March 12, 2000.
...
", before appearing in flashback during "
Bust Out
"Bust Out" is the 23rd episode of the HBO original series ''The Sopranos'' and the 10th of the show's second season. It was written by Frank Renzulli, Robin Green, and Mitchell Burgess and directed by John Patterson, and originally aired on March ...
". Brancato also played a mobster in the TV series ''
Falcone'', which debuted in 2000. Brancato went on to star in ''
'R Xmas
''R Xmas'' is a 2001 American crime film directed by Abel Ferrara. It was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival. Its release was delayed by StudioCanal but it was eventually released on DVD.
Plot
A New York ...
'' (2001), appearing with fellow ''Sopranos'' cast member
Drea de Matteo
Andrea Donna de Matteo is an American actress. She is best known for her role as Adriana La Cerva on the HBO television drama ''The Sopranos'' (1999–2006), for which she received the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a ...
, and appeared opposite
Eddie Murphy
Edward Regan Murphy (born April 3, 1961) is an American actor, comedian, writer, producer, and singer. He rose to fame on the sketch comedy show ''Saturday Night Live'', for which he was a regular cast member from 1980 to 1984. Murphy has als ...
as Larry in ''
The Adventures of Pluto Nash
''The Adventures of Pluto Nash'' is a 2002 American science fiction action comedy film directed by Ron Underwood and starring Eddie Murphy (in a dual role), Randy Quaid, Rosario Dawson, Joe Pantoliano, Jay Mohr, Luis Guzmán, James Rebhorn, Peter B ...
'' (2002).
Brancato's last film before being charged in 2005 for first-degree burglary was ''
Saturday Morning'', released in 2007. The director, whose brother-in-law is a police officer, edited down all of Brancato's scenes during post-production. Following his release from prison in 2013, Brancato made his return to acting with ''
Back in The Day'' (2016). He has since had supporting roles in films including ''Dead on Arrival'' (2017), a remake of ''
D.O.A.
DOA may refer to:
* Dead on arrival
* Dead or Alive (disambiguation)
Film
* ''D.O.A.'' (1949 film), a ''film noir''
* ''D.O.A.'' (1988 film), a remake of the 1949 film
* '' D.O.A.: A Rite of Passage'' (1980 film), a documentary on the gene ...
'' (1950), and ''5th Borough'' (2020). Brancato can be heard narrating the music video for the
Chris Brown
Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to '' Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempo ...
and
Young Thug
Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is considered to be an influential figure of his generation, with his music impacting the modern sound of hip ...
song "City Girls", released on December 4, 2020.
Legal troubles
Brancato started using drugs and alcohol shortly after beginning his acting career in 1992. He was addicted to cocaine and heroin by his mid-20s.
[
On June 10, 2005, Brancato was arrested by the ]Yonkers Police Department
Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enum ...
, in Yonkers
Yonkers () is a city in Westchester County, New York, United States. Developed along the Hudson River, it is the third most populous city in the state of New York, after New York City and Buffalo. The population of Yonkers was 211,569 as enu ...
, New York. Officers originally pulled Brancato over for having a rear brake light out and found he had an expired registration
Register or registration may refer to:
Arts entertainment, and media Music
* Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc.
* ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller
* Registration (organ), the ...
and no other papers for the vehicle. He gave police permission to look in a cigarette box, where they found four bags of heroin
Heroin, also known as diacetylmorphine and diamorphine among other names, is a potent opioid mainly used as a recreational drug for its euphoric effects. Medical grade diamorphine is used as a pure hydrochloride salt. Various white and brow ...
. He was charged with a seventh-degree Class A misdemeanor for criminal possession of a controlled substance.
Bronx apartment robbery
Six months later, on December 10, 2005, Brancato was arrested by the New York City Police Department
The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...
(NYPD) in the Bronx
The Bronx () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the state of New York. It is south of Westchester County; north and east of the New York City borough of Manhattan, across the Harlem River; and north of the New Y ...
for the murder of 28-year-old police officer Daniel Enchautegui, who was at home and off-duty at the time of his death. Enchautegui had served with the NYPD for three years and was assigned to the 40th Precinct in the Bronx. Enchautegui confronted Brancato (then 29) and his accomplice, Steven Armento (48), outside a vacant house located at 3119 Arnow Place, next to his own, after hearing glass break. While Enchautegui waited for backup, a gunfight erupted and Enchautegui was shot. He was later taken to Jacobi Medical Center
Jacobi Medical Center (NYC Health + Hospitals/Jacobi) is a municipal hospital operated by NYC Health + Hospitals in affiliation with the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. The facility is located in the Morris Park neighborhood of the Bronx, Ne ...
, where he died.[
Armento (who was the father of Brancato's girlfriend Stefanie) was found to have fired the fatal shot that killed Enchautegui, and subsequently convicted of ]first-degree murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the c ...
on October 30, 2008, receiving a sentence of life in prison without parole
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes fo ...
.
Brancato was charged with second-degree murder
Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification (jurisprudence), justification or valid excuse (legal), excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person wit ...
, and his trial began on November 17, 2008. On December 22, 2008, a jury found him not guilty of murder, but found him guilty of first-degree attempted burglary. On January 9, 2009, a judge sentenced him to 10 years in prison.
Brancato was incarcerated on Rikers island
Rikers Island is a island in the East River between Queens and the Bronx that contains New York City's main jail complex. Named after Abraham Rycken, who took possession of the island in 1664, the island was originally under in size, but has ...
and as state inmate #09A0227 in the Oneida Correctional Facility in Rome, New York
Rome is a city in Oneida County, New York, United States, located in the Central New York, central part of the state. The population was 32,127 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Rome is one of two principal cities in the Utica–Ro ...
, and was subsequently transferred to the Hudson Correctional Facility. While in prison, Brancato continued his drug use, suffering a heroin overdose
An opioid overdose is toxicity due to excessive consumption of opioids, such as morphine, codeine, heroin, fentanyl, tramadol, and methadone. This preventable pathology can be fatal if it leads to respiratory depression, a lethal condition tha ...
on at least one occasion.[ On December 31, 2013, he was released on ]parole
Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...
. As of 2020, Brancato claimed to be thirteen years sober and has returned to acting.
Filmography
Film
Television
Music videos
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Brancato, Lillo
1976 births
Hispanic and Latino American male actors
Colombian male actors
American male film actors
American male television actors
Colombian emigrants to the United States
Living people
American adoptees
American people convicted of burglary
People acquitted of murder
Male actors from Bogotá
People from Bogotá
People from Yonkers, New York
Prisoners and detainees of New York (state)
20th-century American male actors
21st-century American male actors