Vinny Vella, who has played Jimmy Petrille on "The Sopranos" and other gangsters on TV and movies, believed he had won $5 million after scratching off two numbers on a ticket last week. But lottery officials are saying that Vella's two lucky sevens was actually a faintly printed and worthless 17, the New York Post reported Tuesday.

Vella, 61, doesn't like playing the part of a loser after boasting of his new-found wealth. He has threatened both legal action and taking his claim public on his cable-TV show.

"If it's a misprint, it's not my fault," said Vella. "You know what I look like after telling everybody I won -- I look like some big ass ... I will do everything I can until these people are down on their knees."