The duo Francis Ford Coppola called “the greatest actors in the world”
During the late 1960s, a new form of filmmaking emerged in the United States, drawing inspiration from foreign and arthouse cinema. Fed up with the oppressive nature of the studio systems, a group of young filmmakers decided to reinvent the wheel and thus was born the New Hollywood movement.
One of the main figures from this era was Francis Ford Coppola. After directing Finian’s Rainbow and The Rain People and co-writing Franklin J. Schaffner’s Patton, the director adapted Mario Puzo’s novel The Godfather. Although production was far from smooth, Coppola’s movie became a landmark of American cinema. It completely transformed the gangster genre, leading to subsequent entries like Martin Scorsese’s Goodfellas and Sergio Leone’s Once Upon A Time in America.
The Godfather also spawned two sequels, with many fans boldly declaring Part II the superior entry to the trilogy. Still, the first instalment was the highest-grossing movie of all time for a considerable period, changing how modern cinema was perceived in the mainstream. While the first blockbuster is often recognised as Jaws, released in 1975, The Godfather paved the way. There was plenty of hype surrounding the movie, which blended classic Hollywood ideas with a new and innovative approach to storytelling, captivating audiences of all ages.
For the title role, Coppola knew he needed someone infallible and unforgettable, telling Playboy, “We finally figured that what we had to do was hire the best actor in the world.” Thus, Coppola revealed the two men he believed to be the best: “It was that simple. It boiled down to Laurence Olivier or Marlon Brando, who are the greatest actors in the world.”
It was a long process of auditioning actors before Brando was finally asked. Coppola revealed, “I must have interviewed 2,000 people. We videotaped every old Italian actor in existence. But it became apparent that the role called for an actor of such magnetism, such charisma, just walking into a room had to be an event. We concluded that if an Italian actor had gotten to be 70 years old without becoming famous on his own, he wouldn’t have the air of authority we needed. Robert Evans, who was in charge of production at Paramount, wanted Carlo Ponti, which was an interesting idea: Get someone already important in life, that sort of thinking.”
When Brando was suggested, Puzo was pleased. Coppola explained, “He told me that, ironically enough, he’d been thinking of Brando as the Godfather all along and had, in fact, written him a letter to that effect over two years before.” He added, “Brando seemed too young, even to me, but sometimes when you go out on a limb and connect with someone — Mario, in this case—you say, ‘It’s God signalling me.’ So we narrowed it down to Brando. He had turned down the role in The Conversation some months earlier, but after he’d had a chance to read The Godfather, he called back and said he was interested, that he thought it was a delicious part — he used that word, delicious.”
Watch a clip from the masterpiece below.
