Al Pacino got his breakout role as Michael Corleone in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather. The actor got an Oscar nomination for his compelling performance in the film. The actor reprised the role in the sequels The Godfather Part II and The Godfather Part III. While audiences still love the trilogy as a whole, they consider the first film to be the best film among the three.
Pacino got to share screen space opposite Marlon Brando who played Michael’s father, Vito Corleone. However, that combo almost didn’t happen as another bonafide actor was first attached to the role of Michael. Jack Nicholson turned down The Godfather in favor of other projects as he found them more interesting than Coppola’s film.
Al Pacino Has Jack Nicholson To Thank For His Career-Defining Role in The Godfather
Al Pacino received the gift of his life when he was cast in Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather. The film chronicled the Corleone family and the desire of Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) to pass on his mafia empire to his son Michael Corleone (Pacino). The film became an iconic entry into the gangster/crime drama genre.
The duo had some great intense scenes where they got to show their vulnerable side as well as their conflicting ideologies. However, Chinatown star Jack Nicholson was attached to play Michael before Pacino came into the picture. In an interview, Nicholson revealed that he turned down the film despite knowing that it would turn out to be a huge hit.
The actor revealed that in addition to The Godfather, he has also turned down another iconic film The Sting that starred Paul Newman and Robert Redford. Nicholson was a big Brando fan and one of the reasons that he turned down The Godfather was because he had no scenes with Brando in the script. The Shining star said (via Instagram),
Yes, that’s true, and I think had enough business acumen by then to know that both The Sting and The Godfather were to be huge hits. At the same time, I happen to think that The Last Detail and Chinatown were the more interesting of the films. I’d always wanted to work with Marlon but I was asked to play the lead in it…I didn’t have any scenes with Marlon in the script I read.
Nicholson turning down The Godfather made way for Pacino to enter the scene and the film became his breakthrough project that brought him significant fame and attention. The Batman star’s choice to turn down The Godfather and The Sting did not cost him any damage as The Last Detail and Chinatown remain some of the best films of his career.
Al Pacino Prefers Godfather Part 1 Compared to Part II Due To Its Unpredictable Storytelling
Al Pacino starred in the Godfather trilogy as Michael Corleone, with the three films having some varying tones. The first film is about the rise of Michael, the second goes back in the past with Vito, and the third sees Michael thinking of stepping away from the Mafia game. In a 2023 interview, Pacino revealed that Part 1 is way more entertaining than Part 2.
The actor revealed that he saw the first film recently and found new things to like about it. He praised the unpredictable nature of the film’s screenplay and called it storytelling at its best. Compared to the lively nature of Part 1, the Dog Day Afternoon star claimed that Part 2 is a more somber and slow-paced film. Pacino said (via The Hollywood Reporter),
You see, The Godfather is more entertaining. Godfather I, I saw it recently, it’s always got two or three things going on in a scene. You’re always in the story, you’re going. You don’t know what’s going to happen next, it’s storytelling, it’s really storytelling at its best. Godfather II sort of linearizes, and [it’s] kind of different, somber, moves slowly. But it’s a great movie, I have to say.
The Godfather was a huge critical and commercial hit when it was released in 1972, grossing $250 million against a $6 million budget (via Box Office Mojo). The film remains one of the best films ever made and fans continue to discover and appreciate the film’s complex story of the Corleone family.
Fans can watch The Godfather on Paramount+.
