The Godfather: Trivia You May Not Have Heard Before

The Godfather and its sequels have been subject to much in the way of myths and urban legendry. For instance, although The Godfather won Best Picture at the 1972 Oscars, contrary to popular opinion Francis Ford Coppola did not win Best Director.

That honor went to Bob Fosse for Cabaret. (As should have Best Picture.) Apart from that, there are other more commonly known bits of trivia about The Godfather, but this article will give some information that maybe isn't quite as well known, in addition to some of the more fun bits of knowledge about The Godfather movies that are a bit more well-known.

-Despite the fact that Marlon Brando won his second Best Actor Oscar for playing Don Vito Corleone and died recently with his legacy intact, at the time Brando had been experiencing a pretty long drought. While he had given some interesting performances in films like Burn!, his bottom line was more important. And Brando had not had a hit in over a decade.

-Had it not been for The Godfather, the Brando legend would probably not be what it is now. It is fascinating to consider what the subsequent career of Orson Welles might have been like had Brando turned the role down. Other contenders for the part ranged from the distinctly intriguing idea of Burt Lancaster to the iconic Elmer's glue of Edward G. Robinson (more on him later) to Laurence Olivier who could definitely have played the part, but one cannot help but imagine it would take place in a vastly different movie.

-If Brando had not played Vito Corleone, James Caan's legacy as one of the great unfulfilled acting promises of all time might be different. Apparently, Brando agreed to play Vito Corleone partially on the assurance that Burt Reynolds would not be considered for the part of Sonny Corleone. Bless you, Marlon Brando.