The Big Picture

The making of
The Godfather
involved negotiations and compromises with the real Mafia.
Real-life mobsters influenced the film’s production, with Mafia members appearing as extras and significant roles.
The confrontation between
The Godfather
‘s crew and the Mafia shaped the iconic film, opening doors for realistic portrayals of organized crime.

Arguably the benchmark not only for gangster movies but for films in general, Francis Ford Coppola’s legacy film The Godfather almost never got made. For a movie synonymous with power, family, and the murky world of organized crime, The Godfather continues to captivate audiences with its operatic story of the Corleone family. But before Marlon Brando uttered the iconic line, “I’m gonna make him an offer he can’t refuse,” the film’s making was fraught with real-life drama of offers and counteroffers involving the real mafia. These powerful individuals weren’t fans of seeing their “business” exposed in the blockbuster flick. Before the on-screen violence and fictional vendettas, there was a clash between Hollywood and the real mafia who refused to see their world depicted on the big screen.

The pathway to The Godfather was paved with threats, intimidation, and ultimately, an unlikely compromise that shaped a cinematic legend. In order to film The Godfather, there was one word that was non-negotiable: “Mafia.” According to The New York Times, The Godfather producer Al Ruddy gave in to the Italian American Civil Rights League’s demands to remove all references to the “Mafia” and “Cosa Nostra,” which ran throughout Mario Puzo’s 1969 novel The Godfather, which the movie is based on.

The Godfather (1972) Don Vito Corleone, head of a mafia family, decides to hand over his empire to his youngest son, Michael. However, his decision unintentionally puts the lives of his loved ones in grave danger.Release Date March 14, 1972 Director Francis Ford Coppola Runtime 175 minutes Main Genre Crime Writers Mario Puzo , Francis Ford Coppola Studio Paramount Pictures Tagline An offer you can’t refuse. Production Company Paramount Pictures, Alfran Productions

The Mafia Objected to the Making of ‘The Godfather’
As per Vanity Fair, after Paramount Pictures snagged the rights to Puzo’s book, Italian-American groups, particularly those fighting against negative portrayals in the media, set their sights on the film. Leading the charge was Joe Colombo, a powerful figure in the New York mob scene and founder of the Italian American Civil Rights League. Their main gripe was with the word “Mafia.” They hated the word, and they hated the idea of Italians being stereotyped as gangsters. Colombo encouraged his followers to harass The Godfather’s crew and vandalize their equipment. Things got even messier when the crew, including Al Ruddy and the head of Paramount Pictures, Robert Evans, began receiving death threats. Ruddy even got a warning from the LAPD that he was being tailed. At times, he even had to switch cars to throw them off. The mob wasn’t shy about stating their reasons for the attack, leaving the crew notes stating their disapproval of the film.

According to the Paramount+ series The Offer, about the making of The Godfather, Joe Colombo’s anger was fueled by Frank Sinatra’s dislike for the character Johnny Fontane. Sinatra was convinced the role was based on him (despite Puzo’s denials), and things got heated between him and the author. Their differences went beyond the character, with Puzo having written an essay in The New York Times criticizing Sinatra and the Italian American Civil Rights League. According to TIME Magazine, the campaign against the movie was so powerful that the mob infiltrated the union, leading to production breakdowns due to strikes. Other tactics included intimidating owners of locations where the movie was set to film, causing them to cancel any deals with the production team. With both public confrontations with the Italian American Civil Rights League and behind-the-scenes underhanded dealings, Al Ruddy decided to negotiate with the mafia. Even after successful negotiations, the production didn’t go smoothly, as some members of the Mafia were still opposed to the making of the film.

‘The Godfather’ Producer Al Ruddy Negotiated With the Mafia

Seeing the escalating threat to the making of the movie, Al Ruddy sought out Joe Colombo and the Italian American Civil Rights League for a compromise. The talks took several meetings. According to TIME Magazine, after listening to the Mafia’s demands, Ruddy proposed a compromise deal which included removing all mentions of the words “Mafia” and “Cosa Nostra” from the script, giving jobs and parts in the film to League members, and donating the proceeds from the premiere to the League. He also promised the mafia that he would secure premiere tickets for them and have the premiere in New York.

“Ruddy said he would take out the word ‘Mafia’ from the screenplay, give one million [dollars] to the league, stop selling some ‘Godfather’ board game, and have a premiere of the movie in New York,” says Billy D’Elia, a former mob leader and confidant of one of the crime family gang leaders Russell Bufalino, in the New York Post’s excerpt from Matt Birkbeck’s book The Life We Chose: William ‘Big Billy’ D’Elia and The Last Secrets of America’s Most Powerful Mafia Family.

1:45 Related ‘The Godfather’s Deleted Scene That Should’ve Never Been Cut Somehow, ‘The Godfather’ could’ve been improved with this understated sequence.

As per Birkbeck’s book, Russell Bufalino was intrigued by the movie and worked behind the scenes to smooth things over and ensure the film’s production could move forward. He even offered Marlon Brando, known for his meticulous method acting preparation, practical lessons on playing a mafia boss. In Al Ruddy’s negotiation with Colombo, Russell Bufalino played a key role, convincing Colombo that the movie wouldn’t negatively portray the Italian American community, given the compromises made. According to D’Elia:

“Ruddy kept saying the movie wasn’t about corrupt Italians but a corrupt society. Russell loved that. He was already pulling the strings in the background. He was the rabbi, and Colombo was consulting with him, so when Russell said it was okay, Colombo said okay. Without Russell, that movie would never have been made.”

Image via Paramount Pictures

While the real Mafia’s influence on the script was minimal, their footprint on the iconic film is palpable. Beyond the removal of references to the “Mafia” and “Cosa Nostra,” the real Mafia were woven into the production of the film. Al Ruddy’s negotiation with Joe Colombo and a joint press interview led to his dismissal from Paramount Pictures, per Vanity Fair. Only after intervention from Francis Ford Coppola, who had had conflicts with Paramount Pictures’ executives himself, and pressure from the Mafia was he reinstated. But the Mafia’s influence wasn’t limited to creative control. As part of a compromise deal made by Al Ruddy, The Godfather would end up having some cast members associated with the real Mafia. The iconic opening wedding sequence featured numerous extras drawn from real mafia families. In addition, some significant roles were filled by members close to the crime mobs’ families. One such casting was Lenny Montana, who played Vito Corleone’s bodyguard Luca Brasi. Montana himself had been a bodyguard for Andy Russo, a leader in one of the crime gang families.

Lenny Montana’s story gets even more interesting. According to Matt Birkbeck’s book, he stole a camera lens during the confrontation between the league and the film’s producers. Unaware that a deal had already been struck, Montana showed off the stolen camera lens to the mob. Russell Bufalino, who had been instrumental in the negotiations, ordered him to return it to the production team. Coppola would later spot Montana, who doubled as a professional wrestler, and offer him the iconic Luca Brasi role. It’s worth noting that the famous scene where he stuttered while offering his gratitude to Marlon Brando’s Vito Corleone was actually unscripted (at least in the way it was performed). Montana messed up his lines, but Coppola, recognizing gold, decided to keep it in. He cleverly added a new scene where Brasi practices the speech, highlighting his nervousness before meeting the Don. But the drama with Lenny Montana doesn’t end there.

“After Lenny Montana had been cast as Luca Brasi, he was hired by a certain mobster to beat up Al Ruddy,”reports the New York Post, quoting The Offer’s showrunner Nikki Toscano. Toscano, who based her research on interviews with Al Ruddy himself, claims that Montana showed up at Ruddy’s doorstep and delivered a bloodied beating before calmly reporting to his new acting job the next day as if he hadn’t just beaten up his boss.

‘The Godfather’s Messy Production Led to One of the Best Films of All Time

Imagine a world without The Godfather. No iconic Vito Corleone, and ultimately no Michael Corleone, no operatic family drama, no chilling underworld. This near-miss became reality thanks to a bizarre clash between Hollywood and the real-life Mafia. The film we know is a product of a tense negotiation, a compromise between creative vision and the muscle of organized crime. The Mafia’s influence may have been subtle, replacing words on a page and placing familiar faces on screen, but their mark is undeniable.The Godfather is a skyscraper not just to cinematic achievement, but to the strange bedfellows that can sometimes birth a masterpiece. Its success, despite mafia influence, opened doors for a more realistic portrayal of organized crime in future films. This suggests a potential silver lining – the Mafia’s attempt to control the narrative inadvertently pushed the boundaries of how it could be depicted.

The Godfather is available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.

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