Jerry Ferrara is cruising through the 20th anniversary of ‘Entourage.’ In an Escalade, of course

By Lisa Respers France, CNN

(CNN) — There are plenty of actors who want more than anything to leave the characters that made them famous behind, but Jerry Ferrara is not one of them.

Twenty years after the debut of “Entourage,” the man who played Salvatore “Turtle” Assante smiles as he talks to CNN about where he thinks his character – who ended the series becoming pretty successful – might be today.

“Even though Turtle ended up being rich, I still think he’s driving Vince around in the Escalade,” Ferrara said. “Like, that’s just who they were. It wasn’t so much, ‘Well, now I have money, I don’t have to drive you.’ Those guys were family.”

A beloved family at that.

HBO aired the first episode of “Entourage” on July 18, 2004, and the story of up-and-coming actor Vincent Chase – played by Adrian Grenier – navigating new stardom in Los Angeles with the help of his crew of buddies from his native New York felt very meta, given that it shot the cast into the celebrity stratosphere.

The core cast of “Entourage” – Grenier, Ferrara, Kevin Connolly, Kevin Dillon and Jeremy Piven – became part of a golden age that helped make HBO (which is owned by CNN’s parent company) a powerhouse network, with critically acclaimed series including “The Sopranos,” “The Wire,” “Six Feet Under,” “Deadwood” and “Curb Your Enthusiasm.” “Entourage” was loosely based on the life and career of rapper-turned-actor Mark Wahlberg, who served as one of the show’s executive producers.

Ferrara became beloved as Turtle, who in addition to being a childhood friend of Vincent, also served as his assistant and driver. That entailed Ferrara driving the crew around in an Escalade, which soon became almost synonymous with the show. The New York native said that while he had a driver’s license when he landed the role on the show, “I came from New York where you don’t really need a car.”

Having to drive almost every episode initially helped to make Ferrara a better driver, as well as a fan of the Escalade. So it made sense that when Cadillac unveiled their 2025 refreshed model of the popular SUV, they would partner with Ferrara to spread the news.

“Twenty years goes by and you never know what things are going to stick, but that car, the Escalade was iconic. I always say it was like another character on the show, almost like another location,” he said. “We had so many scenes where it’s the four of us talking about whatever was happening in that episode and it was in the Escalade. The Escalade and Arnold the Dog are the two things that kind of transcended the show and have their own place in the ‘Entourage’ lore.”

For Ferrara, the show not only launched his career, but it also gave him lifelong friends because he says the brotherhood viewers saw among the cast absolutely transcended into real life.

The actor is grateful for both the love people have for Turtle as well as how the character launched his career. These days, he’s a busy young father of two young children who he’s raising in his wife’s hometown of Cleveland.

But he hasn’t left Hollywood behind, and still lands popular roles including playing attorney Joseph “Joe” Proctor on the hit Starz drama “Power.”

As for “Entourage” – which ended after eight seasons in 2011, but had a movie in 2015 – Ferrara said he wouldn’t shut the door on a possible reboot.

“I always said, ‘Nah I don’t think it’ll happen,’” he said. “But I’ve learned to never say never to anything because just when you do that, that’s when the thing happens.”

The-CNN-Wire
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