Puzo's contribution to the potential sequel dealt with the Corleone family in the early 1930s, and was eventually expanded into a novel by Ed Falco and released in 2012 as The Family Corleone.
WHEN WAS THE GODFATHER 2 MADE SERIES
García has since claimed the film's script was nearly produced, however following Puzo's death on 2 July 1999, Coppola decided to retire the film series indefinitely. On June 21, 1999, The Hollywood Reporter had reported that a fourth film was in the works with García in the lead role. Leonardo DiCaprio was discussed as being cast as a young Sonny Corleone. Many actors were rumoured to be cast in the film: Robert De Niro, Andy García and Talia Shire were suggested to be reprising their roles. They had discussed a potential script seeing Vito Corleone and Sonny gaining the families' political power and racketeering empire during the 1930s and with Vincent Corleone in the 1980s, haunted by Mary's death, running the family business through a ten-year destructive war and eventually losing the families' business interests, respect and power, seeing one final scene with Michael Corleone before his death, completing the 100 year story of the Corleone family's rise and fall. The fourth film was intended to be a prequel and a sequel told in a similar narrative to "Part II". Cancelled fourth film Ĭoppola stated that he and Puzo had discussed the potential of a fourth installment. Leonard Maltin, said of the film that the casting of Sofia Coppola was an "almost-fatal flaw". Sofia's performance was received negatively by critics. Coppola said the film is the version he and Puzo had originally envisioned, and it "vindicates" its status among the trilogy and his daughter Sofia's performance. On December 4, 2020, a recut version of the film titled Mario Puzo's The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone was released in a limited number of theatres as well as being released on Blu-ray and streaming platforms. Coppola has stated he intended for Part III to be an epilogue to the first two films. The film also portrays a fictionalized account of real-life events, including the death of Pope John Paul I and the Papal banking scandal of 19, linking them together and with the affairs of Michael Corleone. It completes the story of Michael Corleone, who is now trying to legitimize his criminal empire, and shows the rise of Sonny Corleone's illegitimate son Vincent Corleone as Michael's successor. In his audio commentary for Part II, Coppola stated it was his belief in the first two films having told the complete Corleone saga with nothing more to add that led him to decline multiple requests from Paramount to make a third installment for over a decade, until severe financial difficulties caused by the critical and commercial failure of One from the Heart (1982) compelled him to accept the long-standing offer. Francis Ford Coppola returned as director for the feature-length film, while also writing the screenplay with the help of the author Mario Puzo. The Godfather Part III was released on December 25, 1990. Other subplots include Vito's daughter's abusive marriage, Johnny Fontane's success in Hollywood and Vito's second son Fredo's role in the family business in Las Vegas. Michael plans to move the family business to Las Vegas but before the move, his father dies, and he plots the killing of the heads of the five families on the day of his nephew's baptism. Vito then turns over the reins of the family to Michael.
Michael returns to America after the news of his brother Sonny's murder and marries his former girlfriend Kay.
While in Sicily, Michael travels around the country and meets a woman he marries but who is killed in a car bombing. Vito's oldest son Sonny subsequently takes over the family business and he conspires with Michael to strike back for the assassination attempt by having him kill Sollozzo and a corrupted police captain, forcing Michael to go to Sicily in hiding. The plot begins with Don Vito Corleone declining an offer to join in the narcotics business with notorious drug lord Virgil Sollozzo, which leads to an assassination attempt. The feature-length film was directed by Francis Ford Coppola and based upon Mario Puzo's novel of the same name.
The Godfather was released on March 15, 1972.