Two time Emmy winner Elizabeth Moss has been cast in Barry Levinson’s upcoming “Making of the Godfather” feature. She will play Eleanor Coppola, the domineering wife of Francis Ford Coppola. Moss’ talents add to an already loaded cast, including Oscar Issac as Francis Ford Coppola and Jake Gyllenhaal as Robert Evans.
Barry Levinson, whose previous films include “Rain Man” and “Good Morning Vietnam,” will direct the film. Levinson is redeveloping a Blacklist script by Andrew Farotte that tells the chaotic story of “The Godfather’s” production.
While “The Godfather” is considered of the greatest films of all time, the making of it was incredibly difficult. Coppola, who was still a young filmmaker at the time, was constantly at ends with Robert Evans and the rest of Paramount.
I wrote an article last week about Coppola’s battle with the studio over casting Marlon Brando and Al Pacino. However, he was also met with difficulty over the budget of the film. Paramount allegedly didn’t believe in the story as much as the director, so Coppola had to plead and beg in order to get the necessary expenses for shooting a period piece in New York City. There were also concerns over real life mobsters infiltrating the production, as the mob were apparently not pleased that their innerworkings were being aired on film.
However, as we all know, the film went onto be a major success. Coppola is still revered as one of the greatest directors of all time and the Godfather series launched both Robert de Niro and Al Pacino into global stardom. That being said, I wonder if Levinson’s film will ruffle a few feathers. Some of the main characters are still working actors today who may take offense to their off-camera actions being depicted on film.
Regardless, I’m excited for the rest of the cast to be announced. Levinson still needs roles for Robert Duvall, James Caan, John Cazale, Diane Keaton, and Talia Shire, not to mention the rest of the Paramount executives. If it were up to me, Ray Romano and CGI Joe Pesci would be included somewhere in the cast. But that’s just me.
