Al Pacino, who is still ruling the hearts of fans for his breakthrough performance in The Godfather even after almost 50 years, has made shocking revelation about the film.
In his new memoir Sonny Boy, the Academy Award winner revealed that the mafia drama nearly replaced him.
“Paramount didn’t want me to play Michael Corleone,” he wrote in an excerpt shared by The Guardian.
Pacino continued, “They wanted Jack Nicholson. They wanted Robert Redford. They wanted Warren Beatty or Ryan O’Neal.”
“But here’s the secret: Francis wanted me. He wanted me and I knew that,” wrote Pacino. “And there’s nothing like when a director wants you,” he added.
He further recalled that after some time of filming, Paramount was once again questioned if he was the right choice for Michael Corleone.
“Finally, Francis determined that something had to be done. … At this point we had been shooting The Godfather for about a week and a half. And Francis said, ‘Well, you’re not cutting it,” Pacino added.
The director then moved to the filming of the Italian restaurant scene, where Michael Corleone seeks revenge.
“Then Francis showed the restaurant scene to the studio, and when they looked at it, something was there. Because of that scene I just performed, they kept me in the film. So I didn’t get fired from The Godfather,” he wrote.
Al Pacino’s portrayal of Michael Corleone earned him his first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
He also received a Best Actor for The Godfather Part II.
