Released in 1972, The Godfather by Francis Ford Coppola gets referenced in many ways even to this day. The film encapsulated lies, deception, and most importantly, the lives of the gangster family led by Marlon Brando’s Vito Corleone too well.
Paramount+ even put out a series starring Miles Teller as Albert S. Ruddy (producer), called The Offer. The documentary-style show focused on the challenges that were faced while shooting the Oscar-winning film.
One of the many challenges the production department faced was the tension between the late actor James Caan, who played Sonny Corleone, and one of the co-stars which actually heightened during a scene.
James Caan Got Intense With Co-star On Purpose
Playing a hot-headed character, James Caan dived deeper into Sonny Corleone’s personality in a particular scene that had its connection behind the cameras as well.
His co-star, Gianni Russo, in an interview with Entertainment Weekly, recalled that the tension between Caan and him made the late actor do a lot of unscripted action that he didn’t want to complain about as it was his first film.
Director Francis Ford Coppola, according to the star, had many cameras placed around the raw scene on the street so that it can look as realistic as possible.
James Caan passed away last year, but his co-star said to EW that they weren’t friends at all, calling the late actor “nuts.”
Broken Ribs And A Chipped Elbow, But No Complaints
James Caan reportedly hung out with the co-star prior to the shooting of the scene, as per VladTV. But, he got his co-star in trouble with one of the local gangsters.
“He hated me,” said Gianni Russo about Caan when he set him up with the girlfriend of the gangster he thought was his daughter.
Russo, 79, told Entertainment Weekly a couple of years ago that James Caan didn’t like the fact that he was actually familiar with the gangster world; he used to be an associate.
“Sonny [Caan] and I had a problem all through the movie, on and off the set. We choreographed that [fight] scene for about a day and a half. Jimmy got a little aggressive, I would say, and he improvised a few things like that little billy club he threw at me when I came off the stoop. He hit me right in the head with that. He’s biting my hands; when I crawl out, he literally lifted me up with his kick [breaking his ribs]… none of that was supposed to happen.”
“Jimmy and I are not friends at all, believe me,” added Russo. But he shared that he didn’t want to take that home with him and left the memories of the brawl on the set.
The Godfather is available for streaming on Paramount+.
Source: Entertainment Weekly
