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For Francis Ford Coppola,The Godfatherwas the movie that revolutionized the gangster genre of filmmaking, received a strong commercial reception, and gave him high acclaim.
Coppola has other classics to his name, fromThe ConversationtoApocalypse Now, but the release of the mobster epic has cemented the director’s reputation.The Godfatherwon three Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Actor, and Best Adapted Screenplay (shared with Mario Puzo).
Also read:“What is this, the Carpetbaggers?”: The Godfather Director Francis Ford Coppola Hated Mario Puzo’s Original Novel That Nearly Made Him Refuse to Make Marlon Brando Starrer Epic
Francis Ford Coppola was Almost in Danger of Being Fired FromThe Godfather
Earlier,Francis Ford Coppolawas unimpressed with Mario Puzo’s novel, calling it “sleazy.” But Coppola needed money for his company, American Zoetrope, so he agreed to direct for Paramount.
Although, Paramount didn’t hold respect for Coppola, and they only selected him due to his Italian heritage. It’s because Robert Evans, Paramount’s head at the time, wanted an Italian team forTheGodfatherto enhance its depiction of Italian-American culture. So, when Sergio Leone declined, the studio opted for Coppola.
While making the film (directed and co-written by Coppola), he faced immense pressure, clashes with the studio, and numerous external challenges in bringing his vision to the screen. Coppola ultimately won these battles, but he has admitted that he felt in danger of being fired from the project three or four times.
Also read:“I got only about 50 pages into it”: Francis Ford Coppola Nearly Refused to Make $291M The Godfather After Finding Original Novel ‘Cheap and Sensational’ as Movie Turns 51 Years
Patton‘s Script Saved Francis Ford Coppola to Survive inThe Godfather
Francis Ford Coppola and North won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay forPatton(Coppola co-wrote the script forPattonin 1970 along with Edmund H. North). However, Coppola didn’t attend the ceremony. Instead, he watched it in New York with his friend Martin Scorsese, and they celebrated Coppola’s win together.
“I was thrilled, and Marty said to me, ‘I don’t think they’re going to fire you now.’ He was right. In other words, they probably wouldn’t fire me for a while because, how do you have the guy who wrote your script and is directing your film and then he wins an Oscar and then you fire him? Marty recognized that winning the Oscar was going to preserve me. I was really worried.”
Coppola’s artistic decisions were proved right, and Paramount had a successful film. Despite having almost fired the director once, the studio was now urging him to create a sequel.
WatchThe Godfatheron Prime Video.
Also read:‘Francis Ford Coppola don’t give a damn’: Internet Divided as Godfather Director Casts Controversial Actor Shia LaBeouf in New Movie ‘Megalopolis’ While He Faces Sexual Assault Charges
Source:The Playlist
Shreya Jha
Articles Published :1042
Meet Shreya, FandomWire’s go-to Pop-Culture Writer. She holds a master’s degree in Journalism and a pop culture obsession that rivals even the most die-hard ‘Star Wars’ and Marvel fans.Her articles have been published in Animated Times, Creator Mail, and The Luxxe Mag. When Shreya’s not busy dishing out hot takes, she is lost in the world of rom-coms.
