Jon Hamm Became a 'Mentor' to James Gandolfini's Son Michael After His Death: 'He's My Buddy'

Jon Hamm took James Gandolfini's son under his wing following the Sopranos star's sudden death.

Gandolfini died of a heart attack in 2013 when he was just 51, and his son Michael was only 14.

Now, Hamm, 53, has revealed that Michael "reached out" to him when the veteran actor died — thanks to encouragement from his father.

"He said, 'My dad told me that you were a good guy,'" the Fargo star told The Hollywood Reporter, noting that he was emotional about it, and his response to Michael, now 25, was, "'OK, let’s be friends.' And he is. He’s my buddy."

Hamm said he has since "been a bit of a mentor to him" as Michael has taken up acting, even reprising his father's character, Tony Soprano, in the 2021 prequel film, The Many Saints of Newark.

Hamm noted that he didn't know James all that well, though they now have "a very interesting connection" thanks to his son.

One thing they did share, though, was a similar relationship to their beloved characters – Tony Soprano and Don Draper.

Hamm said his Mad Men character "got celebrated for the wrong reasons," as he told the outlet, "People thought that Don was this paragon of masculinity or whatever. There were so many think-pieces, and you go, 'Wait, he was pretty f---ed up.'"

James "had a similar relationship to Tony Soprano," Hamm said, adding that Bryan Cranston felt the same about Breaking Bad's Walter White.

For Michael, playing his father's character was a loaded responsibility, but he clarified to PEOPLE at the time of the film's release that he "didn't play my dad. I played Tony."

The Many Saints of Newark — which told the story of Tony Soprano growing up in Newark and evolving into the mob boss he becomes thanks to the influence of his uncle Dickie (Alessandro Nivola) — was "a long time coming," Michael said, and he was "so honored" to be involved.

"I feel a bond. I understand the toll that he went through, the hard work that he put in as an actor that maybe I wouldn't have known as a kid," he said of how playing a young Tony made him understand his father better. "I respect him as an actor more."

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

The Sopranos is streaming in full on Max, and Fargo is available to stream on Hulu.