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We know that Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather trilogy is considered to be the zenith of mafia films. There have been other great titles such as Goodfellas, One Upon a Time in America, Scarface or Heat, but The Godfather trilogy (especially the first two movies) is something else. It is, without a doubt, peak cinema.

This trilogy set the scene for the story of the Corleone family, and while it was inspired by the books by Mario Puzo, the franchise is considered to be a faithful and accurate depiction of the life in mafia families, as well as the world of mafia in general.

Now, we can confirm that a new mafia-themed movie is on its way and it is going to be titled Corleone. The movie will begin production next year and we can also confirm that it has found its director. If you’re curious about the movie,...

"The Godfather" is one of the greatest movies ever made, and the story about the making of the film has become the stuff of legend. The behind-the-scenes shenanigans that went into Francis Ford Coppola's American masterpiece have become so ingrained in the popular culture that someone even made an entire TV show about the making of the film ("The Offer," which premiered in 2022). If you're a film buff, you likely know the details: Coppola was still a young director at the time, and he had to fight hard to maintain his specific vision for the project. In the end, Coppola got his way, and "The Godfather" became a box office smash that took home several Oscars. But getting there was not easy.

One of the many clashes Coppola had with the studio, Paramount, involved casting of the film. The cast members of "The Godfather" are so pitch-perfect that it's...

Did The Godfather Go Too Far? The Controversial Use of Real Horse Heads in the Iconic Scene! (Photo Credit – Facebook)

The scene made jaws drop and earned The Godfather its gritty rep. Jack Woltz wakes up grisly surprised: his prized horse’s head sharing his pillow. Did Coppola use a real horse’s head for that scene? Yep—and the story behind it? Even wilder.

Released in 1972, The Godfather was Coppola’s adaptation of Mario Puzo’s novel. Coppola’s obsession with authenticity pushed every detail, big and small, to the max—right down to cars with WWII-era wooden bumpers. Paramount wasn’t thrilled with Coppola’s intensity, but they let him roll when they saw what he was creating until the horse head scene came up.

The scene plays out like this: Johnny Fontane’s desperate for a role in a big-budget war movie. But the hitch? Producer Jack...

Getting a film made is far easier said than done. That's why most Hollywood movies are based on pre-existing material -- both to try and speed up the process of generating a story itself, and to have some assurance that there's an audience for the story. This mentality has led to truly original movies becoming something of a rarity. Truth is, Hollywood has always looked to existing IP (intellectual property).What's new about today's situation is that the IP they're generally tapping tends to be of a short-form or experiential variety: either remakes, reboots, and legacy sequels to older movies, or TV shows, comic books, and video games.

In the early decades of cinema, however, the main source for adaptations was literature. Where comics, games, TV and other movies are all visual mediums and come pre-loaded with their own imagery, books are a covenant between the author and reader's imagination,...

Al Pacino is one of the veterans in the movie industry who is now considered a legend. With a career spanning over five decades, he is undoubtedly a national treasure. It’s hard to imagine that his acting skill was once doubted by people, especially by a movie crew that he previously worked with.

Credits: Al Pacino in The Godfather / Paramount Pictures

One of his most unforgettable projects is Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather, and fans will be surprised to know that he was almost fired from the production because they weren’t satisfied with his performance. What’s more annoying was that some of the crew members laughed at him, as revealed by the actor in an interview.

Al Pacino Recalls Horrible Experience on the Set of The Godfather

In an excerpt from his memoir Sonny Boy published by The Guardian, renowned actor Al Pacino recounts his experience...

Al Pacino has revealed the movie he seriously hoped would win him an Oscar.

The star is promoting his book Sonny Boy this week in the UK and while he has had quite the decorated career, he has said there was one performance he felt was somewhat overlooked – Scarface.

Pacino played Tony Montana in Brian De Palma’s movie, immortalizing the phrase “Say hello to my little friend.” Yet Scarface was completely snubbed by the Academy.

This morning on the BBC Today program, Pacino named the movie as the one he wished he’d got an Oscar for. “I would have liked to have even got nominated for that one,” he said of Scarface.

As it turned out, he was to win his Oscar a decade later for Scent of a Woman, while he has been nominated a further seven times including for the first two Godfathers.

Pacino made headlines...

Although Al Pacino will always be synonymous with his breakthrough performance in The Godfather (1972), Francis Ford Coppola‘s acclaimed mafia drama nearly replaced him.

In his new memoir Sonny Boy, which is now available, the Academy Award winner recalled Paramount “questioning whether I was the right actor” to play Michael Corleone in the feature adaptation of Mario Puzo’s book and how he was ultimately able to prove himself.

“Paramount didn’t want me to play Michael Corleone,” he wrote in an excerpt shared by The Guardian. “They wanted Jack Nicholson. They wanted Robert Redford. They wanted Warren Beatty or Ryan O’Neal. In the book, Puzo had Michael calling himself ‘the sissy of the Corleone family.’ He was supposed to be small, dark-haired, handsome in a delicate way, no visible threat to anybody. That didn’t sound like the guys that the studio wanted. But that didn’t mean it had to be me.

When he bagged the lead role, he couldn’t believe his luck. But after just a week of filming he was on the brink of being fired. In an exclusive extract from his new book, the actor recalls the making of the film that changed his life

One day in the middle of the afternoon, I got a phone call. On the other end of the line, I heard the name and the voice of the director who would change my life: Francis Ford Coppola. First, he told me he was going to be directing The Godfather. I thought he might be fantasising. What was he talking about? How did they give him The Godfather?

I had read Mario Puzo’s novel, which had become a big hit; it was a huge deal for anyone to be involved with it. But when you’re a young actor you don’t...

“Keep your friends close, but your enemies closer.” Ah, wise words indeed! Honestly, who hasn’t employed that strategy at the office potluck? It’s a jungle out there, and sometimes, it’s a fight for the last slice of pizza. Speaking of survival—and let’s be real, a whole lot of drama—let’s dive into the cinematic masterpiece that is The Godfather.

Al Pacino in The Godfather | Credit: Paramount Pictures

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola and based on Mario Puzo’s novel, The Godfather tells the story of an Italian American mob family navigating life from the 1940s to the 1970s. It’s not your typical family drama; it features power struggles, betrayals, and plenty of intense dinners.

The film kicks off with Marlon Brando, who plays the crime boss and legendary Godfather, Vito Corleone. Then there’s Al Pacino as Michael, Vito’s youngest son. In...

Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis is in cinemas now and seems to have divided audiences. While the filmmaker funded the magnum opus himself, he reportedly had to struggle to get it released due to prominent distributors stepping away from the movie. However, the film finally managed to get a wide release but has not fared well.

One of Coppola’s best films remains the classic The Godfather, which gave him his second Oscar for his screenplay, which he adapted from Mario Puzo’s novel of the same name. While Coppola was reportedly attracted to the themes and the setting of the story, he was apprehensive about its sleaze and decided to cut it out of the film.

Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather Significantly Differed From The Book In One Aspect Francis Ford Coppola | Credits: YouTube/Full Bodied Productions

Going through huge battles to make a movie the way he...

“Megalopolis” is now playing in theaters, and director Francis Ford Coppola is in the Oscar hunt yet again after already winning multiple Academy Awards throughout his esteemed career. Let’s look back at his many Oscar races.

After building his credits as a screenwriter and director in the 1960s, Coppola’s breakthroughs arrived in the early 1970s with “Patton” and “The Godfather.” He wrote the screenplay to the beloved epic drama “Patton,” directed Franklin J. Schaffner and starring George C. Scott, both of whom won Oscars for the film. Coppola also received his first Academy Award for his original screenplay, which he shared with co-writer Edmund H. North. His only threat in the category that year was “Five Easy Pieces,” which got into Best Picture, but with “Patton” dominating in a bunch of categories that year, winning the Screenplay prize was all but inevitable.

See Ray Richmond: ‘Megalopolis’ trailer...

Francis Ford Coppola is detailing just how influential late icon James Gandolfini was on “Megalopolis.”

Coppola told Rolling Stone that his long-gestating script for the epic was almost greenlit back in 2001. During that time, Coppola conducted table readings of an earlier “Megalopolis” draft with actors Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Edie Falco, and Uma Thurman. While none of these stars appear in the 2024 feature, it turns out that “Megalopolis” has a deeper “Sopranos” connection beyond just Falco being part of the initial ensemble.

“The Sopranos” lead star Gandolfini actually was also part of that first table reading, and gave feedback on the script. Gandolfini was cast in the co-lead role as the mayor; Giancarlo Esposito now stars as the character in the film.

“It was the pregnant version of it, but it wasn’t all that similar,” Coppola said. “There were different periods where I took stabs at it. What...

“I believe in America” is the first line you hear in The Godfather. A troubled funeral home proprietor by the name of Amerigo Bonasera has come to see Don Corleone to seek revenge for his daughter, wronged by two young Anglo-Saxon men. The movie at its core is an immigrant’s story shorn of bootstrapping Horatio Alger fantasies or any notions of smooth integration into society. The film and book tell rather of old world traditions mingling, enhancing, and corrupting the democratic experiment with often spectacularly bloody results. The America...

Michael Corleone in The Godfather, played by Al Pacino, is hailed as one of the finest performances in world cinema. His memorable character transition in the Francis Ford Coppola film is still discussed among worldwide fans. But interestingly, Al Pacino was never the original choice for the role. They had their eyes on another legendary performer, Robert Redford for the role.

Al Pacino as Michael Corleone in The Godfather | Credits: Paramount Pictures

The Godfather presented a beautiful amalgamation of popular and lesser-known stars who looked straight out of Mario Puzo’s bestselling novel. However, the 1972 masterpiece had a very problematic production schedule due to an intense conflict between Paramount and Francis Ford Coppola. Paramount wanted it to be a more star-studded affair with better-known stars.

Al Pacino almost lost his historical role in The Godfather because of Paramount

A still featuring Vito Corleone and Michael Corleone in The Godfather | Credits:...

This August, Prime Video is bringing you a lot of entertainment with the highly anticipated Season 2 of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, an all-new action-comedy film starring John Cena and Awkwafina titled Jackpot!, and an animated Batman series titled Batman: Caped Crusader. However, for the purposes of this article, we are only including the films that are coming to Prime Video this month and have a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score. So, check out the 10 best films that are coming to Prime Video in August 2024 with a 90% or higher Rotten Tomatoes score.

Fargo (August 1)

Rotten Tomatoes Score: 95%

Fargo is a dark comedy crime drama film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. The 1996 film follows the story of Jerry, a sales manager who is under a huge debt. To repay his loan he hatches a plan to hire two henchmen to kidnap his wife and...

The concept of good vs. evil is at the heart of almost every movie ever made, but how that antagonistic force takes shape always varies. We can look at certain genres, such as superhero films or horror movies, and envision what a villain looks like. Sometimes they'll wield a knife or an axe, or perhaps they'll attempt to destroy the world to gain incalculable power. But arguably some of the most terrifying antagonists in films can't be visualized in the same way, because they all emanate from nature; if nothing else, they become so much more terrifying specifically because you can't reason with these antagonists and they have no sentience like human beings. 

A natural disaster is at the heart of the big movie of the week, Lee Isaac Chung's long-awaited "Twisters," a follow-up to Jan de Bont's 1996 film all about storm chasers in Oklahoma. But natural disasters...

Writer-director Robert Towne, an Oscar winner for his original script for “Chinatown” and an acknowledged master of the art of screenwriting, has died. He was 89.

Towne died Monday at his home in Los Angeles, publicist Carrie McClure said in a statement.

During a long career that began in the 1960s, when he went to work as an actor and writer for B-movie director Roger Corman, Towne became one of the most sought-after script doctors in movie history, called on time and again to solve structural problems and create great moments for other people’s films.

Towne came to prominence in the 1970s with three critical and commercial hits released within a 14-month period: “The Last Detail” (1973), “Chinatown” (1974) and “Shampoo” (1975). All three screenplays were Oscar- nominated, with “Chinatown” winning in its year.

Hired as a “special consultant” by Warren Beatty for 1967’s “Bonnie and Clyde,” Towne restructured the picture to dramatize the outlaws’ impending doom.

A motion picture screenplay is by nature imperfectible, and time, tide, and taste will have their say. The Oscar-winning script written for 1974’s “Chinatown” by Robert Towne — who passed away Monday, July 1, at age 89, according to his publicist (via THR) — makes its own case for being as perfect an example of the form as we may ever see. That it was the first original (as opposed to an adaptation) Towne ever authored, coming along at the age of 40, is itself remarkable.

It’s no coincidence that his great friend Jack Nicholson, an artistic comrade in arms since they met as neophytes in a Hollywood acting class, was the center of “Chinatown’s” dark beauty and also of the ribald, corrosive and mordantly funny Towne script for 1973’s “The Last Detail.” Another friend, Warren Beatty, was the centerpiece of 1975’s “Shampoo,” which joined the previous two to notch Towne’s third...

Robert Towne, the screenwriter as superstar whose Oscar-winning work on the 1974 classic Chinatown is widely recognized as the gold standard for movie scripts, has died. He was 89.

Towne died Monday at his home in Los Angeles, publicist Carri McClure announced.

He also received Academy Award nominations for The Last Detail (1973) and Shampoo (1975) in the years surrounding his most famous work.

His takes on Los Angeles were etched with melancholy and painted the city as one of beauty and sadness. In Chinatown and Shampoo, gumshoe J.J. Gittes (Jack Nicholson) and Beverly Hills hairdresser George Roundy (Warren Beatty) end up alone. (Towne collaborated often with those actors.)

This squinty vantage on Southern California, as a temptress who dashes hopes, also was evident in his script for Tequila Sunrise (1988), which starred Mel Gibson as a retired drug dealer, Kurt Russell as a cop and Michelle Pfeiffer as the femme fatale.

Towne also...

Bringing together a legendary ensemble to translate Mario Puzo’s glorious novel to life was no cakewalk; being a part of the iconic star cast of The Godfather was perhaps even more complicated a feat to achieve. But even out of those who did get to work in Francis Ford Coppola’s crime classic, not everyone felt exhilarated about the opportunity.

Marlon Brando in The Godfather (1972) (Credit: Paramount Pictures)

In fact, there was one star who felt anything but elated for the most endearing reason, though.

The Rocky Star Who Didn’t Wish to Be Cast in The Godfather

If Talia Shire could go back in time and extricate herself from the colossal blockbuster that her brother helmed, she probably would.

Shire, 78, who happens to be Francis Ford Coppola’s younger sister, was cast as Connie Corleone – the tenacious and only daughter of the formidable patriarch of the Corleone family.

Oscar-nominated producer Albert S. Ruddy, who died at the end of May 2024, was one of only nine producers to earn two or more Best Picture Academy Awards, and he won them within the longest historical interval of 32 years. Ruddy was awarded for his work on The Godfather (1972) as well as Million Dollar Baby (2004).

His experience making The Godfather became subject of the Paramount+ miniseries The Offer, in which Miles Teller portrayed Ruddy and his experience adapting Mario Puzo’s best-selling novel under Francis Ford Coppola’s direction.

Before his big-screen hits, Ruddy co-created Hogan’s Heroes, a sitcom that followed Allied prisoners in a Nazi Pow camp, with Bernie Fein.

Scroll through the photos below for a look at Ruddy’s career from The Godfather to Walker.

Albert S. Ruddy, who earned two Best Picture Oscars for producing The Godfather and Million Dollar Baby and co-created TV shows including Walker, Texas Ranger and Hogan’s Heroes, died May 25 at UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center after a brief illness, a family spokesman said. He was 94.

Ruddy is one of nine producers ever to earn two or more Best Picture Oscars, and has the distinction of winning them with the largest interval in between — 32 years.

He recently was portrayed by Miles Teller in the Paramount+ miniseries The Offer, which chronicles Ruddy’s experience making the 1972 film that Coppola directed and adapted with Mario Puzo from the latter’s bestselling novel.

Related: Peter Bart: ‘The Offer’ Spins A Mafia Tale About ‘The Godfather’ That’s Really More Fiction Than Fact

“Al was truly one of the great Hollywood mavericks,” The Offer director Dexter Fletcher said in a statement. “One of...

Al Ruddy, who co-created the famed CBS sitcom Hogan’s Heroes, then captured Academy Awards for producing the best picture winners The Godfather and Million Dollar Baby, has died. He was 94.

Ruddy, also credited as one of the creators of the long-running CBS police drama Walker, Texas Ranger, died Saturday following a brief illness at UCLA Ronald Reagan Medical Center, a publicist announced.

On the heels of The Godfather (1972), Ruddy produced another box-office hit with the original The Longest Yard (1974), the prison-set football movie that starred Burt Reynolds. The pair then reteamed for the action road films The Cannonball Run (1981) and its 1984 sequel, both directed by stuntman-turned-helmer Hal Needham.

The personable Ruddy also produced such films as Bad Girls (1994), the first Western with all female leads (Madeleine Stowe, Mary Stuart Masterson, Andie MacDowell and Drew Barrymore); the baseball comedy The Scout (1994), starring Albert Brooks and Brendan Fraser; and Matilda (1978), a comedy...

Among the many mafia gangster films made across the world, throughout the history of cinema, Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather trilogy will forever remain the most iconic. With a screenplay by Mario Puzo and starring an incredible ensemble cast involving Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, and more, the movies now occupy a distinct place in Hollywood’s Hall of Fame.

Al Pacino and Marlon Brando in The Godfather | Paramount Pictures

Even after all these decades, the trilogy serves as an inspiration to many, proving its outstanding legacy. Often, a few details from the set are revealed, bringing the movies back into the limelight. Recently, after the release of The Godfather trilogy on 4K Uhd for its 50th anniversary, the cast and movies are back in discussion for their antics on set.

The Godfather Cast Loved to Moon Each Other on Set

A scene from Francis Ford Coppola’s...

Legendary actor James Caan was known for his role as Sonny Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather. The actor received an Academy Award nomination for his role as Don’s eldest son and was often regarded as one of the greatest actors of the generation. Caan also starred in films such as Misery, The Gambler, and Elf.

Caan has also turned down many noted roles that turned out to be game-changers for the actors who ended up playing them. Among films such as The French Connection and Apocalypse Now, Caan was rumored to be offered the role of Han Solo in Star Wars. While Harrison Ford played the iconic character, Caan reportedly had a crude response to it.

James Caan’s Crude Response To Harrison Ford Playing Han Solo Harrison Ford in Star Wars: A New Hope | Credits: Lucasfilm Ltd./20th Century Fox

Harrison Ford’s role as...

Francis Ford Coppola made one of the greatest crime films ever when he adapted Mario Puzo’s The Godfather. The Marlon Brando-starrer saw the veteran win his second Oscar for Best Actor and was a breakthrough for Al Pacino. Coppola then followed it up with The Godfather – Part II, which became the first sequel to win Best Picture.

The sequel saw Robert De Niro play the role of a younger Vito Corleone (played by Brando in the original). De Niro won the Oscar for Best Supporting Role for the film and had a breakthrough with the film. While he did a phenomenal job as Corleone, he reportedly auditioned way back for the first part and was up for the role of Sonny Corleone.

Robert De Niro Originally Auditioned For Sonny Corleone In The Godfather Marlon Brando in The Godfather | Credits: Paramount Pictures/Alfran Productions

Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather...

Exclusive: UTA has signed rising Portuguese actress Sara Sampaio (Superman) for representation, Deadline has learned.

Sampaio is best known for landing the coveted role of Eve Teschmacher in Superman, which is currently in production with James Gunn at the helm. The first title in a revamped DC slate, Superman follows the titular character, played by David Corenswet, as he looks to reconcile his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing. He is the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way, guided by human kindness in a world that sees kindness as old-fashioned.

Created by Richard Donner and Mario Puzo, and first appearing in Superman and Superman II, Sampaio’s character is portrayed in the comics as Lex Luthor’s assistant turned love interest and right hand. Produced by DC Studios and to be distributed by Warner Bros, the film also stars Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor,...

There is one masterpiece that continues to cast a long, illustrious shadow over the film industry: Francis Ford Coppola’s adaptation of Mario Puzo’s novel The Godfather.

Isn’t it remarkable how a film can so thoroughly capture the collective imagination, resonating with audiences decade after decade? Steeped in authenticity, the 1972 gangster masterpiece is heralded as one of the most acclaimed films of all time, etching its lines, scenes, and characters into the very fabric of cinematic history.

Al Pacino in The Godfather II | Credit: Paramount Pictures

Take Coppola’s ensemble cast, which starred Diane Keaton, Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, and Robert Duvall. The latter played Tom Hagen, the unofficially adopted son of Vito Corleone, played by Brando. Well, his portrayal of Tom in Paramount Pictures’ series is iconic, and it’s no surprise that his favorite scene from the film revolves around the revelation that he is the adopted son.

Above: 1980 Japanese poster for Apocalypse Now. Design by Eiko Ishioka, artwork by Haruo Takino.With Francis Ford Coppola’s long-gestated Megalopolis having premiered yesterday at Cannes, it's a good time to look back at the posters from his 60-year-long career. The only problem is that many posters for his films are either too well known or nothing to write home about. Like Coppola’s career itself, there are peaks and valleys—one of my very first posts for Notebook, almost exactly fifteen years ago, was about the gorgeous design for The Rain People (1969)—but a career retrospective of his posters seems like it might result in less than the sum of its parts. Yet of all his posters there are three rare Japanese designs that have always stood out as utterly extraordinary: two for Apocalypse Now (1979) and one for Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992).I’ve always seen these posters attributed to Eiko Ishioka,...

When most cinephiles think of Francis Ford Coppola, they think of his miracle run in the 1970s. During that decade, he directed four films, all of them five-star masterpieces: The Godfather, The Conversation, The Godfather, Part II, and Apocalypse Now. Or they think of embarrassments from his for-hire period, including the Robin Williams weepy Jack. Yet those five films hardly encapsulate the entire career of Francis Ford Coppola, which will likely end with the upcoming Megalopolis. Instead the best indication of Coppola as an artist and filmmaker might be found in the most recent movies he’s made, with Coppola having released three self-produced and self-financed pictures every two years between 2007 and 2011: Youth Without Youth, Twixt, and Tetro.

Although they vary in quality, and none top his work from the ’70s, this independent trio captures the experimental and romantic heart that lies at the center of Coppola’s overall oeuvre.

Robert De Niro’s film legacy is being toasted for his 80th birthday in 2024.

During the annual Tribeca Festival, which will take place June 5 through 16, will be an inaugural De Niro Con celebration of the Oscar winner’s filmography. Auteurs Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino, and David O. Russell will revisit their collaborations with De Niro for panel discussions post-screenings, while De Niro’s former co-stars Christopher Walken, Billy Crystal, and more are set to add to the celebrations.

The three-day tribute will take place at Spring Studios from June 14 through 16. De Niro Con is powered by Webex Events, allowing fans to download an exclusive app to make the most of their Con experience.

Programming includes a screening series with 13 classic De Niro films, including the 50th anniversary of “Mean Streets,” live conversations with long-time collaborators, career-spanning exhibit “De Niro Is an Icon: An Exhibit & Immersive Film” with more than 300 curated...

The Godfather without Al Pacino does not feel right at all, and it’s truly impossible to imagine another actor playing Michael Corleone. Fans have got Diane Keaton to thank because her chemistry with the actor landed him the job.

Al Pacino in The Godfather

But that’s not to discredit Pacino; the actor is a winner of Academy, Emmy, Golden Globes, and Tony awards. He could have gotten the part without breaking a sweat, but for some reason, the studio did not like him.

Diane Keaton On Helping Al Pacino Land His The Godfather Role

Speaking with Et Online, actress Diane Keaton recalled how she got the role of Kay Adams-Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather. She admitted being clueless about the story and even more shocked that she won the part.

“I auditioned for The Godfather having never read it, and I knew nothing about it,...

Francis Ford Coppola is one of the most revered directors in Hollywood. He enjoyed tremendous success with the Godfather franchise, even if the third and final installment polarized the fans. Regardless, the filmmaker won critical acclaim, and it engraved his name in the annals of cinema history.

Coppola can be credited for adapting the book for the big screen so flawlessly, with each role carefully chosen. However, the production for the third film was mired in problems, accentuated by the fact that Robert Duvall refused to return to complete the trilogy.

Duvall refused to return for the final film (Source: The Godfather)

Why did Robert Duvall turn down Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather 3?

Francis Ford Coppola established himself as an esteemed director quite early on in his career. He put together an incredible lineup that brought Mario Puzo’s novel to life, with Al Pacino and Marlon Brando leading the cast.

Until recently, if one were asked to name some of the best films of preeminent 1970s filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, it would be easy to pick the big hits. “The Godfather” (1972), “The Godfather II” (1974) and “Apocalypse Now” (1979) are definitely his most iconic and respected films. You’d also be hard-pressed to find a person aged 25-50 who isn’t keenly aware of his adaption of S.E. Hinton’s mandatory high school assigned “The Outsiders” (1983) or his classics “Peggy Sue Got Married” (1986) and maybe even “Tucker: The Man and His Dream” (1988). Yet lately, Coppola’s “The Conversation” (1974) has entered the chat as a somewhat under the radar, low-key masterpiece from the filmmaker, and this year the film celebrates its 50th birthday.

After honing his directorial chops on films like the Roger Corman-produced horror film “Dementia 13” (1963) and fledgling films like “You’re a Big Boy Now” (1966), “Finian’s Rainbow” (1968) and “The Rain People...

Red, White & Royal Blue is in contention for the Outstanding Television Movie prize at the 2024 Emmy Awards and the film’s stars are promoting the project as voting gets underway.

Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine just spoke with EW for a new interview as part of The Awardist podcast and they opened up about the potential for a sequel.

The actors play Prince Henry of Britain and Alex Claremont-Diaz, first son of the first female president of the United States, in the movie based on Casey McQuiston‘s bestselling novel. The story documents their transition from frenemies to actual friends to eventual lovers. It also features some steamy love scenes.

So, would they be open to reprising their roles in a sequel?

Keep reading to find out more…

“I’m over here glazed over because this is the question I get every day in my life,” Taylor said.

Filmmaker Steven Spielberg has helmed one too many masterpieces throughout his five and a half decades old star-studded career. And for one who brought the dinosaurs from the Jurassic Park novel series from Michael Crichton to life in one of the most remarkable ways possible, he once intended to make a film on the superhero Superman as well.

Steven Spielberg. Credit: Elena Ternovaja | Wikimedia Commons.

This happened back in the late 1970s, when he was still one of the relatively unknown directors. But despite being one of the most brilliant up-and-coming masterminds of the time, his film on Clark Kent never came to be. And, well, thankfully so, for the brutally wild pitch for the fan-favorite character would’ve quite literally killed the Man of Steel forever!

Steven Spielberg Wanted to Helm 1978’s Superman

Superman (1978)

After Mario Puzo was done writing a 500-plus page script for Clark Kent in live-action,...

Photo: Francis Ford Coppola

As we prepare for Francis Ford Coppola's 'Megalopolis', written, produced and directed by the genius Coppola, let us pay tribute to the auteur. 'Megalopolis' is a mega-starrer with Adam Driver, Forest Whitaker, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jon Voight, Laurence Fishburne, Aubrey Plaza, Shia Labeouf, Jason Schwartzman, Grace VanderWaal, Kathryn Hunter, Talia Shire, Dustin Hoffman, D. B. Sweeney, and Giancarlo Esposito. Humble Beginnings Francis Ford Coppola has been well-known for directing the ground-breaking ‘Godfather Trilogy.’ Before he decided to sit on the director’s chair and make some of the most influential movies of his career, Coppola was a boy who grew up confined to bed with polio when he was nine years old. During his time indoors, he would create puppet shows in order to entertain himself. Eventually, he developed a keen interest in making 8-mm films. Despite the fact that he was born in Detroit Michigan,...

The films of Francis Ford Coppola, at their core, are all about family. That theme goes for behind the camera as well as in front of it; according to interviews with Coppola on the Blu-Ray and 4K Ultra HD special features of the "Godfather" films, the director wished for the actors portraying the Corleone crime family to feel as much like a real family as possible before cameras began rolling. So, prior to making "The Godfather," Coppola arranged for the primary family members — Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, John Cazale and Talia Shire — to meet at an Italian restaurant in New York City, have dinner together and improvise as their characters the entire time.

With all that preparation, and the fact that the filmmakers were adapting Mario Puzo's 400-page novel into what became a three-hour movie whose narrative spans the length of a decade on screen,...

Amidst the acclaim that The Godfather received from all fronts, there was one influential critic of the movie — Frank Sinatra. The beef between Sinatra and the film began even before the start of filming. The singer and actor believed that one character in Mario Puzo’s novel, that of Johnny Fontaine, was modeled after him. On one occasion, Sinatra had a heated confrontation about this with Puzo where he threatened the author.

Marlon Brando as Vito Corleone in The Godfather

However, his threats on another occasion did not seem to bother singer Al Martino, who played the brief role of Johnny Fontaine in the film. In the end, all the efforts of Frank Sinatra to ruin The Godfather became futile as the movie became the biggest hit in Hollywood upon release.

Frank Sinatra Failed To Threaten One Actor Away From The Godfather Role

Guys and Dolls actor Frank Sinatra failed...

Sharon Stone became one of the most successful actors in the 1990s Hollywood. Starring in roles that were deemed mysterious or akin to a femme fatale, she became one of the more promising sex symbols in the film industry. With her beauty and charisma, Stone wowed her audiences, and with her talent in acting, she got in the good graces of the critics.

Sharon Stone in Basic Instinct

Previously, Sharin Stone released her bombshell memoir, The Beauty of Living Twice, in 2021. She made many claims there. From how she was not considered for Basic Instinct for a long time, to how a producer of one of her movies asked her to sleep with her co-star to improve his performance in the movie. Now, recently, she dropped some names to go along with the story.

Sharon Stone Dropped Some Name Bombs

Sharon Stone, 66, was on The Louis Theroux Podcast earlier this week,...

The more one studies the making of 1972's "The Godfather," the more two things become abundantly clear. One: Francis Ford Coppola was hellbent on adapting Mario Puzo's novel to the screen with a strong eye toward character and theme, an approach that Robert Evans and the regime of Paramount Pictures at the time did not understand nor believe in. And two: Coppola was incredibly miserable while making the film given all of the hurdles he had to get over and enemies he had to outwit, and was just barely able to complete the movie in the way he wanted to.

While there are many examples that illustrate this struggle, one of the most illuminating concerns the scene in which the Godfather, Don Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando), dies peacefully yet ignominiously (especially for a once powerful and feared man) in a tomato patch at his home, suffering a heart attack while playing with his grandson,...

"The Godfather" trilogy is one of the most quotable series of films in cinema history. While the second and third installments of the series have their memorable lines, it's 1972's "The Godfather" which contains the bulk of the trilogy's most indelible dialogue. To illustrate the point: it seems everyone and their father has a Marlon Brando-as-Don Corleone impression in their back pocket (whether that impression is any good or not is another matter), and while the main reason for that is due to Brando's unique take on the character, it wouldn't be half as popular to do at parties and whatnot without the excellent lines from the film to back it up.

Most of this dialogue comes courtesy of "Godfather" author Mario Puzo, with co-screenwriter and director Francis Ford Coppola choosing to include the bulk of Puzo's prose in his screen adaptation. Although some of the dialogue in...

Superman is soaring back to the forefront. A new iteration of the Man of Steel is coming from Warner Bros, which made a splashy acquisition at Sundance of the documentary Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story. That tells the story of moviedom’s first Man of Steel, and how he found his real superpowers in becoming an activist after suffering an equestrian accident that left him paralyzed.

On the heels of that comes an auction by Peter Harrington Rare Books of storyboards that Ivor Beddoes drew for the original Superman, the 1978 blockbuster directed by Richard Donner, with script by Mario Puzo and David Newman, with John Williams score. The film starred Reeve, Marlon Brando, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder, Glen Ford, Ned Beatty and Terence Stamp. They’ve allowed Deadline readers and Superman fans to take a trip down memory lane and see how the film was structured visually. The most expensive film made for its time,...

Michael I. Levy, a veteran talent representative involved in the careers of such major stars and players as Richard Burton, Elizabeth Taylor, Robert Duval, Bruce Lee, Marlon Brando and William Peter Blattey, died January 11 of complications from Covid pneumonia. He was 84.

His death was announced today by his family.

At the start of his career, Levy represented blacklisted film and TV writers including Waldo Salt, Ring Lardner Jr., and Dalton Trumbo. He would later participate in the careers of Milos Foreman, Michael Mann, Ingmar Bergman, John Huston, John Landis, Mario Puzo and Stan Lee of Marvel Comics as well as Marvel Comics itself.

Through his Michael I. Levy Enterprises, Levy packaged more than 100 films, TV series, and TV movies for major producing clients. In 1981, he became President and CEO of CBS Theatrical Film Group, contributing to the Fox-cbs video deal and the formation of Tri-Star Motion Pictures.

Throughout his career,...

On Dec. 20, 1990, Francis Ford Coppola unveiled The Godfather: Part III at its premiere at the Academy Theater in Beverly Hills. The film went on to gross $136 million globally and nab seven Oscar nominations at the 63rd Academy Awards. The Hollywood Reporter’s original review is below:

It’s business, and personal. A complex depiction of Michael Corleone’s dying-days attempt to cement the family in the “legitimate” business world and attain spiritual redemption, this third installment of the Corleone Family chronicle is a full-bodied, albeit somber dramatic orchestration.

However, legitimacy has its price — respectability exacts a grayness and a tempering of one’s style and substance — and this splendidly conceived, although often confusing saga, is itself vulnerable to the dramatic doldrums of Michael’s venture into “respectable” dominions.

The Godfather, Part III does not go to the mattresses, it goes to the boardroom, and mainstream viewers after being served up...

Darklit Press, the up-and-coming indie horror publisher founded by Andrew Robert, has signed with Independent Artist Group for film and TV representation.

Darklit works with authors of horror, suspense, and dark fiction from around the world. One of its goals is to identify and develop manuscripts from emerging genre authors.

Launched only in 2022, Robert’s aim was to provide a platform and editorial support for marginalized and underrepresented authors in the category. A growing readership has embraced the company’s prolific output. Darklit authors have been recognized by horror fiction awards bodies, including the Bram Stoker, Shirley Jackson, Lambda Literary, and Splatterpunk awards.

Among the authors on the roster are are Stoker Award nominee Ross Jeffery, Splatterpunk nominee Steve Stred, Aurealis Award nominee Zachary Ashford, author and editor Caitlin Marceau, and Tyler Jones, who recently was recognized on the annual Esquire’s Best Horror Books list in 2022. Authors Yolanda Stefsos,...

Filmmaker Guillermo del Toro says there are only a few "universal characters" in fiction, such as Pinocchio, Frankenstein, Sherlock Holmes, and Tarzan. Far be it from me to compare my wisdom to Gdt's, but I would add Superman to that roster. The first and most mythic American superhero, there's something about Clark Kent everyone responds to.

With the original 1978 "Superman" film, director Richard Donner and screenwriter Mario Puzo spun co-creators Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster's original Moses myth into a Christ allegory. Zack Snyder, director of "Man of Steel," echoed that but with a darker focus on the burdens of being mankind's savior, "Last Temptation of Christ" style.

John Byrne, who relaunched Superman comics in 1986, focused on the immigrant parable of Superman as the Last Son of Krypton living on Earth. Byrne is the one who redefined Superman as Clark Kent first, Kal-El second.

Grant Morrison, author of...

Clearly wanting to get a move on with Superman: Legacy (not shocking given the ticking clock of its 2025 release), James Gunn has been busy adding new cast members to his next superhero outing, which also carries the burden of launching the big screen vision for his DC Studios. The latest recruits for the film are Skyler Gisondo, who will play Jimmy Olsen, and Sara Sampaio, who is taking the role of Eve Teschmacher (:a[the latter news broken by Deadline]{href='https://deadline.com/2023/11/superman-legacy-sara-sampaio-as-eve-teschmacher-1235632216/' }). All together now: :a["North, Miss Teschmacher!"]{href='https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1MVUes6bVw' }

Gunn has already locked in his Superman and Lois Lane, with David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan taking those key roles. And he's been building the ensemble around them, including Isabela Merced, Nathan Fillion, Ed Gathegi, Anthony Carrigan and María Gabriela De Faría.

Just on Monday we learned that :a[Nicholas Hoult would be playing villain Lex Luthor]{href='https://www.

Here’s more casting news for Superman: Legacy!

James Gunn’s upcoming film is an important anchor on the proposed restart of the DC film continuity. Gunn and his DC CEO partner Peter Safran have the daunting task of attempting to win over the loyal fans of the Dceu universe who have felt skeptical about the overhauling of the shared universe and mourn the ending of their favorite interpretations of the past few years. Recently, Gunn posted a photo of his production office that showcases a wall full of art from Superman: For All Seasons, and fans got a glimpse of David Corenswet as he works his way to a Superman build in a photo posted by his trainer.

Now, The Hollywood Reporter has revealed that James Gunn found his Jimmy Olsen in Skyler Gisondo, known for his work on HBO’s The Righteous Gemstones. In addition to Gisondo’s casting,...

Exclusive: Warner Bros has set Sara Sampaio (At Midnight) for the role of Eve Teschmacher in Superman: Legacy, Deadline can exclusively reveal.

First appearing in Superman and Superman II, the character created by Richard Donner and Mario Puzo is portrayed in the comics as Lex Luthor’s assistant turned love interest and right hand. Sampaio steps into a role previously inhabited by Valerie Perrine in the Christopher Reeve-led Superman flicks, and by Andrea Brooks on The CW’s Supergirl.

Portraying Luthor, as we were first to tell you, is Nicholas Hoult. David Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan star as Clark Kent/Superman and Lois Lane, respectively. Also in the ensemble are Nathan Fillion as Guy Gardner/Green Lantern, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, Edi Gathegi as Mister Terrific, Anthony Carrigan as Rex Mason/Metamorpho, and María Gabriela de Faría as Angela Spica/The Engineer.

The first title in a revamped DC slate,...