In the history of Hollywood, few films have achieved the legendary status held by Francis Ford Coppola’s 1972 masterpiece, The Godfather. With an ensemble cast featuring stars such as John Cazale, Al Pacino, James Caan, Diane Keaton, and Marlon Brando, the film stands as a testament to its meticulously woven narrative and unwavering commitment to cinematic excellence.
Centering around the saga of the Corleone family, the titans of the mafia world, and their youngest heir, Michael, poised on the precipice of leadership, The Godfather successfully captured the essence of the American dream.
Why was Al Pacino disappointed with his role in The Godfather
The Godfather chronicled the journey of an unwilling heir thrust into a world of generational legacy and criminal intricacies. While Brando’s portrayal of Don Vito Corleone garnered headlines for decades, it’s Al Pacino’s portrayal of Michael, the emotionally twisted criminal, that exuded an even more profound potency.
Yet, intriguingly, Al Pacino harbored a simmering disappointment for never receiving the acclaim that his counterpart Brando attained. Despite boasting more screen time than the Don, Pacino was conspicuously absent from the list of Academy Award nominations for Best Leading Actor. This perceived snub translated into Pacino’s bold boycott of the awards ceremony, a move that many attributed to his possible resentment over Brando’s Oscar victory.
However, Pacino’s retrospective complaints pale in comparison to the journey that ultimately landed him the role in the first place. In a revelation by Francis Ford Coppola, it was highlighted that Pacino was at first rejected for the role.
Al Pacino was turned down for the role due to this surprising reason
Sharing a segment of Al Pacino’s audition tape for the iconic role of Michael Corleone on his Instagram account, Coppola disclosed, “The interesting thing here, was a reason given to me against casting Pacino was not only was he too short, but also too ‘scruffy.”
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Further elaborating, he recounted,
“So we got him a haircut and dressed him more non-scruffy and more collegiate, and then the criticism was he so cleaned up, he lost some of his natural appeal. I realised they just didn’t want Al, no matter whether tall or short, scruffy or collegiate…The first ‘too scruffy’ haircut was given to him by my wife, Ellie. For the second haircut, we went to a local barber, and he found out it was for a Godfather actor; he had a heart attack. (The barber really had a heart attack and was taken off to hospital afterwards).”
Al Pacino was far from a Hollywood luminary when cast in Coppola’s magnum opus. Although the esteemed actor had garnered respect prior to that, etching his presence in several lesser-known films, including the 1971 drama The Panic in Needle Park.
However, it was precisely his performance in this Jerry Schatzberg-helmed feature that captivated Coppola’s attention and led to Pacino’s pivotal role in The Godfather.
Source: Far Out
