It’s hard to picture anyone but Marlon Brando filling Don Vito Corleone’s big shoes, but there were plenty of actors who almost got the role of a lifetime instead of Brando.
Laurence Olivier was the first to get offered the role, and surely would have delivered a memorable performance. Sadly, he was dealing with health problems at the time, and so turned it down. Frank Sinatra lobbied hard to be cast in the role, as did Orson Welles. In addition, famous names such as Ernest Borgnine, Burt Lancaster, Anthony Quinn, Edward G. Robinson, and plenty of others were considered.
Violence Sells
Paramount gave Coppola, Willis, and the rest of the team plenty of leeway and let them do what they wanted, with one exception. They weren't sure if the movie would be a hit or not – no one ever is – so they asked Coppola to add more explicit violence because they knew that was what people wanted to see.
This addition worked for a couple of reasons, not only to highlight how deadly the Corleone family was but to further the allegorical tie-in to the dangers of capitalism.
Nobody Ever Said Brando Was Easy to Work With
Marlon Brando had tons of eccentricities while filming, including an incredible love of food. And this happened to affect the filming of "The Godfather" in a big way.
While filming the scenes set in Little Italy, Brando became obsessed with something really specific: spicy squid with hot sauce. And when we say obsessed, we mean obsessed. He had to have some of it in his view at all times while filming the scenes, even during the shot when Vito leans over the body of his dead son Sonny. Off-camera, Brando is holding a container of the spicy squid.
Lots of Acting Options
Since the movie had lots and lots of roles, the cast was huge, and some incredibly famous and surprising names were considered. Robert Redford was considered for Michael Corleone, as well as Jack Nicholson, Dustin Hoffman, and Tommy Lee Jones.
Anthony Perkins and Burt Reynolds both auditioned for Sonny, and Steve McQueen, Paul Newman, and even Elvis Presley auditioned for Tom Hagen... but Presley was way more interested in playing Vito Corleone. No shade on Elvis, but we're kind of glad they went with Brando. Of all things, Sylvester Stallone auditioned for both Paulie and Carlo.
Method Acting Madness
At one point in "The Godfather", a corrupt police officer punches Michael Corleone and breaks his jaw, which leads Michael to kill the cop along with a few others. It's a critical step on his path to leading the Corleone crime family, but there's an interesting detail.
After Michael's jaw breaks, he gets it wired shut to heal. Al Pacino acts superbly during these scenes, helped mostly by the fact that he got his jaw wired shut in real life, too. Pacino is an actor dedicated to his craft, but this takes preparing for a role to a whole new level.