Quick LinksDomenick Lombardozzi and His Rotten Apple Character Jennifer Esposito’s Clear Vision for Fresh Kills
Fresh Kills tells a gripping coming-of-age story about two very different sisters in a close-knit Staten Island mob family. Jennifer Esposito writes, directs, and stars as Francine Larusso, mother to the quiet Rose (Emily Bader) and her formidable older sister Connie (Odessa A’zion). Domenick Lombardozzi (Reacher, The Wire) co-stars as Joe, Francine’s gangster boss husband and the girls’ father. Annabella Sciorra (The Sopranos, Tulsa King) plays his sister, Christine, who turns a blind eye to her brother’s ruthless activities.

The film brilliantly focuses on women trapped in a situation with nowhere to turn. Lombardozzi and Sciorra credit Esposito’s skill in working with the younger cast. The native New Yorkers humorously admit they really never went to Staten Island before filming because they “had no reason” to except for an easier DMV. Please watch above and read below our interview with Lombardozzi and Sciorra.

Domenick Lombardozzi and His Rotten Apple Character
Fresh Kills 4/5 Release Date June 14, 2024 Director Jennifer Esposito Cast Jennifer Esposito , Odessa A’Zion , Annabella Sciorra , Domenick Lombardozzi , Nicole Ehinger , Emily Bader , Bettina Skye , David Iacono Runtime 2h

Read Our Review

MovieWeb: I’m a New Yorker. I just loved Fresh Kills, every single second of it. I thought it was very well done. Okay, so the first question, the same I posed to Jennifer [Esposito]. We all know the Fresh Kills landfill from Staten Island. We remember the smell of it. Anybody who was in New York back in the day can remember how it pervaded the entire area when you were driving down the Staten Island freeway. Does the relationship with the Larussos, what’s going on behind the scenes, is that symbolic of the landfill? Is there something rotten going on there?

Domenick Lombardozzi: I didn’t grow up in Staten Island, so I wasn’t familiar with it. But I’m glad we shared the same barber (laughs). Yeah, I think I’m the rotten apple. I think I’m that stench. I think I’m the closest thing to that dump. Because, you know, he’s a person who’s in this world. All they do is nothing but poison the people that are around. So maybe there’s something to that.

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MW: Annabella, what do you think?

Annabella Sciorra: Yeah, I think definitely it’s not a mistake that it’s called Fresh Kills. However, I also did not grow up in Staten Island. I grew up in Brooklyn and never went to Staten Island. I had no reason to. I was actually surprised going to Staten Island to shoot this. Because I didn’t really know what it was like in Staten Island. I think the only reason we went to Staten Island growing up is to go to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Because it was an easier Department of Motor Vehicles than it was in Brooklyn. But yeah, I think it’s no mistake that it’s called Fresh Kills, kind of brilliant.

Jennifer Esposito’s Clear Vision for Fresh Kills

MW: Let’s talk about working with Jennifer. I’ve watched her for many years. She does a tremendous job here. You two are veteran actors. Actors who direct say that there is a companionship. There’s a fellowship with the actors that really helps the entire process. Is that true? Talk about working with her and what the process was like.

Annabella Sciorra: Um, sorry, my glasses are steaming. Jennifer was Jennifer. Because she’s an actor, she was able to talk. I would watch her direct the girls. She knew the language to speak in and sometimes unsaid. A director says something, and you don’t know what they’re talking about. So you sort of just let it wash over you and hope you know it comes out imbued with what they’re looking for. But Jennifer, it was a lot more specific because we speak the same language.

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MW: Dominic, what do you think?

Domenick Lombardozzi: I think Jennifer had a clear vision of what she wanted this film to be. And like Annabella said, I saw her work with the young girls. Her way of communicating was priceless. She was able to convey what she wanted and what she needed to these girls in such a friendly, nurturing kind of way. With me personally she told me what she needed. I kind of understood what her point of view was, and more or less what needed to happen. But she gives you a wide space, and then if she needs to, if it needs to be faster or slower, or bigger or smaller, she comes in, but you trust her. The biggest thing for me was trusting Jennifer, and as long as I could do that, I could be a sponge.

Fresh Kills was released theatrically on June 14 from Quiver Distribution. You can watch the trailer below: