People¶
The cast and crew — who they were before, what they did here, and what it cost or bought them.
A cast of unknowns, a director nobody wanted, and a fading star the studio had banned from the lot. A fair description of the 1971 call sheet
The authors¶
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31, in debt, hired because he was cheap and Italian-American. Five Academy Awards later.
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Wrote a bestseller to clear gambling debts, having never met a gangster. Won two Oscars for the screenplays.
The family¶
- Marlon Brando — box-office poison in 1970; won Best Actor and refused it
- Al Pacino — nearly fired in week three; two nominations, no wins for this role
- James Caan — took Sonny over Michael, and Pacino's casting depended on it
- Robert Duvall — Coppola's first and only choice for Hagen; walked away from Part III
- Diane Keaton — cast for her strangeness; won Best Actress five years later for something else
- John Cazale — five films, five Best Picture nominees, dead at 42
- Talia Shire — the director's sister, and nominated twice in two years
- Robert De Niro — cast as Paulie Gatto, left, came back as Vito, won the Oscar
- Andy García — Part III's only acting nomination
- Supporting Cast — Castellano, Vigoda, Hayden, Conte, Rocco, Strasberg, Gazzo, Wallach, Mantegna, and the rest
Behind the camera¶
- Gordon Willis — the Prince of Darkness. Never nominated for any of it.
- Nino Rota — Fellini's composer. Nominated, disqualified, then won for the sequel.
- The Crew — Tavoularis, Murch, Zinner, Malkin, Roos, Johnstone, Van Runkle, Carmine Coppola
- Robert Evans — the studio chief who fought Coppola over everything and took credit for all of it
- Albert S. Ruddy — the producer who negotiated with the mob and won Best Picture
The Oscar ledger¶
Who actually won what, for these films:
| Person | Award | Film |
|---|---|---|
| Marlon Brando | Best Actor | The Godfather — declined |
| Mario Puzo & Coppola | Best Adapted Screenplay | The Godfather |
| Albert S. Ruddy | Best Picture | The Godfather |
| Coppola, Gray Frederickson, Fred Roos | Best Picture | Part II |
| Francis Ford Coppola | Best Director | Part II |
| Robert De Niro | Best Supporting Actor | Part II |
| Coppola & Puzo | Best Adapted Screenplay | Part II |
| Nino Rota & Carmine Coppola | Best Original Dramatic Score | Part II |
| Dean Tavoularis, Angelo Graham, George R. Nelson | Best Art Direction | Part II |
Nominated and lost, for these films: Pacino (twice), Caan, Duvall, Talia Shire, Michael V. Gazzo, Lee Strasberg, Andy García, Gordon Willis, Walter Murch, Barry Malkin, Lisa Fruchtman, Peter Zinner, William Reynolds, Richard Marks, Anna Hill Johnstone, Theadora Van Runkle, Carmine Coppola, and Coppola himself for directing the first film.
Full tables: Awards.
Who's still here¶
Of the principal cast and crew of the 1972 film:
Living: Francis Ford Coppola (b. 1939), Al Pacino (b. 1940), Talia Shire (b. 1946), Robert De Niro (b. 1943), Andy García (b. 1956), Sofia Coppola (b. 1971).
Gone: Marlon Brando (2004), John Cazale (1978), Mario Puzo (1999), Nino Rota (1979), Richard Castellano (1988), Sterling Hayden (1986), Richard Conte (1975), Al Lettieri (1975), John Marley (1984), Lenny Montana (1992), Abe Vigoda (2016), Alex Rocco (2015), Morgana King (2018), Gordon Willis (2014), Robert Evans (2019), Lee Strasberg (1982), Michael V. Gazzo (1995), Eli Wallach (2014), Al Martino (2009), James Caan (2022), Albert S. Ruddy (2024), Diane Keaton (2025), Robert Duvall (2026).