He auditioned for the part of Paulie Gatto, the character who works under Corleone caporegime Clemenza (Richard Castellano) and famously meets his end at the wheel of a car. According to Peter Biskind, De Niro was also considered for a number of other roles after his auditions, including Michael Corleone.

Was Robert De Niro supposed to be Michael Corleone?

Robert De Niro Could Have Played Michael Corleone, the Role Al Pacino Made Iconic in The Godfather. Sean Levy writes in the excellent biography De Niro: A Life that Francis Ford Coppola considered “a number of names for every key role” in 1972's The Godfather – including De Niro and Pacino.

Who auditioned to play Michael Corleone?

Numerous actors, many of whom were bankable stars, were considered to play Michael. From Jack Nicholson to Warren Beatty and Robert Redford, some of Hollywood's biggest stars were either offered the role or turned it down. Coppola held out for Pacino, but Paramount made a move to cast James Caan as Michael.

Did Robert De Niro audition for Godfather?

Robert De Niro auditioned for the 1972 film The Godfather and was surprisingly rejected. Watch his audition tape. Robert De Niro is one of the greatest actors in the history of cinema. So it is quite hard to believe that he would have auditioned for something and did not land a role for the same.

What actor turned down the role of Michael Corleone?

Dustin Hoffman and Jack Nicholson both turned down the role of Michael. There were many actors considered for role of Michael. Robert Redford…he was too WASPish, Martin Sheen who actually auditioned for the role.

Robert De Niro as Sonny from The Godfather

Who auditioned for Kay in The Godfather?

Mia Farrow As Kay Corleone

But she wasn't the first choice for the role. Three horror movie starlets — Rosemary's Baby's Mia Farrow, Don't Look Now's Julie Christie, and Trilogy of Terror's Karen Black (who got her film debut in Francis Ford Coppola's You're a Big Boy Now) — were also considered to play Kay.

Who was the first choice to play Don Corleone?

Hard as it may be to believe, Brando was not the first choice to play Don Vito Corleone. The British legend Sir Laurence Olivier was the first actor to be offered the role. Sir Laurence pleaded date issues.

Did Robert De Niro really speak Italian in The Godfather?

Robert De Niro spent four months learning to speak the Sicilian dialect of Italian in order to play Vito Corleone. Nearly all of the dialogue that his character speaks in the film was in Sicilian. Originally, the actors in the flashback scenes wore pants with zippers.

Did Al Pacino and Diane Keaton get along in Godfather?

Pacino and Keaton met on the set of The Godfather in 1971, where Pacino scored his career-making role as Michael Corleone. Keaton instantly crushed on her costar. “I was mad for him. Charming, hilarious, a nonstop talker,” she told PEOPLE in 2017.

Why did Robert De Niro turn down The Godfather?

Robert De Niro originally was given the part of Paulie Gatto. A spot in The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight opened up after Al Pacino quit the project in favor of The Godfather, which led De Niro to audition for the role and leave The Godfather after receiving the part.

Who didn't want Al Pacino in The Godfather?

Diane Keaton said she was cast before Al Pacino in the 1972 classic gangster flick "The Godfather." The actress said Pacino was not the first choice to star as Michael Corleone in the Francis Ford Coppola film. "Nobody wanted Al Pacino.

Who was meant to play Mary Corleone?

Sofia Coppola, the daughter of director Francis Ford Coppola, was cast in the role of Mary Corleone after several choices dropped out: Winona Ryder discontinued her involvement with the film due to nervous exhaustion, Julia Roberts due to scheduling conflicts, and Madonna was deemed too old for the part by some.

Why did Jack Nicholson refuse The Godfather?

The primary reason why Jack Nicholson turned down the role of Michael Corleone in The Godfather was that the presently retired Nicholson, who identified himself as being Irish throughout his career, felt that the role of the Italian-American Michael should be played by an Italian actor.

Did Al Pacino like The Godfather?

But in a telephone interview last month, Pacino, now 81, was quite philosophical, even whimsical, about discussing the film. He remains an ardent admirer of the movie and of the lengths that Coppola and his co-stars went to support him, and he is still awe-struck about how it single-handedly gave him his career.

Who was originally cast as Sonny Corleone?

Why was James Caan cast as Sonny in The Godfather even though he isn't Italian? Originally Caan was to be cast as the main character Michael Corleone, while Carmine Caridi was signed as Sonny. However, Coppola demanded that the role of Michael be played by Al Pacino instead.

Why didn't they like Al Pacino in The Godfather?

Posting a portion of Al Pacino's audition tape for the role of Michael Corleone to his Instagram account, the director stated: “The interesting thing here, was a reason given to me against casting Pacino was not only was he too short, but also too 'scruffy'.”

Who was Jack Nicholson going to play in The Godfather?

He believed Chinatown and The Last Detail had stronger scripts than The Godfather and The Sting. Although initially interested in playing Michael Corleone, Nicholson felt he was the wrong choice for the role.

Was Jack Nicholson supposed to be in The Godfather?

He read The Godfather script and knew that the film would be a hit, based on the quality of Mario Puzo's novel alone. But even with this enthusiasm for the project, Nicholson turned down the role of Michael Corleone.

Was Jack Nicholson almost in The Godfather?

Almost Played Michael Corleone

Of all the countless actors who were offered The Godfather's star role, Michael Corleone, Jack Nicholson was perhaps the one with the highest chance to live up to Pacino's timeless effort.

Why did Marlon Brando refused to appear in Godfather 2?

Casting. Several actors from the first film did not return for the sequel. Marlon Brando initially agreed to return for the birthday flashback sequence, but the actor, feeling mistreated by the board at Paramount, failed to show up for the single day's shooting. Coppola then rewrote the scene that same day.

Who was Vito Corleone modeled after?

Vito Corleone is based on a composite of mid-20th-century New York Mafia figures Carlo Gambino, Frank Costello, Joe Bonanno, and Joe Profaci. Mario told me that all of the great dialogue, those quotable lines he put into the mouth of Don Corleone, were actually spoken by Mario's mother.

Can Robert De Niro speak Sicilian?

Robert De Niro has alweys been proud of his Italian roots, as a matter of fact his great-grandparents were from Molise. His ability in speaking the Sicilian dialect in The Godfather II led him to win a Best Supporting Actor Oscar. Clint Eastwood acted in Sergio Leone's Dollars Trilogy.

Who turned down the role of Johnny Fontane?

Damone eventually declined the role because of a salary dispute and also because he did not want to provoke the mob or anger Frank Sinatra, whom Damone profoundly respected. Ultimately, the part of Johnny Fontane was given to Martino.

Who was originally cast as Luca Brasi?

Lenny Montana(1926-1992)

Tall and solidly built, this Italian-American professional wrestler turned actor was born Lenny Passaforo in Brooklyn, New York, and is best remembered for his first on-screen role as the not too bright but ever loyal bodyguard Luca Brasi in.

Who ordered the killing of Michael Corleone?

Vincent tells Michael that Altobello has hired Mosca, a veteran hitman, to assassinate Michael. Mosca, disguised as a priest, kills Corleone family friend Don Tommasino as he returns to his villa. While Michael and Kay tour Sicily, Michael asks for Kay's forgiveness, and they admit they still love each other.