Al Pacino was on the verge of being ousted from The Godfather by Paramount Studios before one scene saved his role in Francis Ford Coppola’s acclaimed mafia drama.
In an excerpt shared by The Guardian from his new memoir, Sonny Boy, the 84-year-old actor revealed that the studio questioned his casting twice, but he ultimately proved himself with Coppola’s support.
“Paramount didn’t want me to play Michael Corleone,” he wrote. “They wanted Jack Nicholson, Robert Redford, Warren Beatty, or Ryan O’Neal.”
“But here’s the secret: Francis wanted me. He wanted me, and I knew that,” The Academy Award winner added. “There’s nothing like it when a director wants you. He also gave me a gift in the form of Diane Keaton.”
“After a week and a half of filming, Paramount once again questioned whether he was the right choice for the role. Finally, Francis determined that something had to be done,” Pacino recalled.
While Pacino remained muddled if Coppola acted “deliberately,” he remembered that the director moved up the filming of the Italian restaurant scene.
“That scene wasn’t meant to be shot until a few days later, but if something hadn’t happened to let me show what I was capable of, there might not have been a future for me,” Pacino continued.
“Then Francis showed the restaurant scene to the studio, and when they looked at it, something was there,” he wrote. “Because of that scene I just performed, they kept me in the film. So I didn’t get fired from The Godfather.”
Fortunately, Pacino executed the scene exactly how Coppola wanted, proving his casting as Michael Corleone in the 1972 iconic film.
