James Gandolfini threw a 'tantrum' over a 'Sopranos' masturbation scene and tried to have it cut, according to a new book

• James Gandolfini once threw a "tantrum" over a masturbation scene on "The Sopranos."
• According to the new book "Tinderbox," Gandolfini wanted the sexual scene to be cut.

James Gandolfini once threw a "tantrum" over a masturbation scene in "The Sopranos," according to a new book about HBO.

An excerpt from James Andrew Miller's "Tinderbox: HBO's Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers" revealed that the script for one episode had Gandolfini's character Tony Soprano running into a gas station bathroom to masturbate.

Despite the fact that Tony was involved in a multi-episode affair with realtor Julianna Skiff (Julianna Margulies) at the time of the masturbation scene, Gandolfini still had a "tantrum," according to Miller. However, the actor eventually relented, and went on to film the scene as written.

Tony's masturbation scene ultimately didn't make the final cut of the episode, per Miller, since it was edited out of the finished version.

Gandolfini starred on "The Sopranos," which ran from 1999 to 2007. For his role as Tony on the critically-acclaimed HBO drama, Gandolfini was nominated for (and won) numerous awards, including three Primetime Emmys and a Golden Globe.

Following the end of "The Sopranos," Gandolfini co-founded a production company called Attaboy Films, along with film executive Alex Ryan.

Gandolfini would go on to produce documentaries for HBO, like "Alive Day Memories: Home from Iraq," about injured veterans from the Iraq war, and "Wartorn," focusing on the effects of PTSD on soldiers.

Sadly, Gandolfini died in 2013 during a trip to Rome with his family. His final two projects, rom-com "Enough Said" (with Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and crime drama "The Drop" (costarring Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace) were released posthumously. More recently, Gandolfini's son Michael stepped into his father's famous role, starring as a young Tony Soprano in the "Sopranos" prequel film "The Many Saints of Newark."