According to Deadline Hollywood, Barry Levinson is set to direct Francis and The Godfather. Directed by the maker of Rain Man, this new venture centers around the making of the 1972 classic The Godfather.
The script by Andrew Farotte had previously been on Franklin Leonard’s blacklist of unproduced scripts. Oscar Isaac and Jake Gyllenhaal will play Director Francis Ford Coppola and Producer Mark
Oscar Isaac on the left, Jake Gyllenhaal on the right
Evans, respectively. The news comes on the heels of a re-edit of The Godfather Part III, which used Coppola’s preferred title: The Death of Michael Corleone.
Adapted from the 1969 bestseller by Mario Puzo, The Godfather centers on the Corleone family. Don Vito attempts to keep his family together as other criminal elements push them to join the drug trade. When the Don refuses to comply, he is severely wounded and incapacitated in an assassination attempt. This forces his war-hero son Michael to rejoin the family and subsequently take over “the family business.”
AN OFFER THEY ALMOST REFUSED
The story behind this film’s making is rife with narrative potential. Right from the beginning, there were huge issues with getting the film in the can. For starters, Paramount initially refused to cast Marlon Brando, given his reputation for on-set shenanigans. You can learn more about those here. In addition, they wanted James Caan, who was already cast to play Santino “Sonny” Corleone, to read for Michael. Against Coppola’s wishes, Paramount even wanted another filmmaker following him around to take over in case Coppola was fired.
Though Gylanhaal will surely do a great job, Oscar Issac’s portrayal of The Godfather‘s filmmaker raises even higher expectations. In most of his roles, from A Most Violent Year to the Star Wars sequel trilogy, Issac always brings a pedigree to the screen that forces the rest of the cast to up their game. To see Issac help bring this all to life is going to be fascinating. Paired with an Oscar-winning director like Levinson, then this film may well be one worth looking out for in theaters.
More information about The Godfather can be found on the film’s official website.
