Over the years, The Godfather Part III, Francis Ford Coppola’s ambitious conclusion to the story of Michael Corleone, has become something like a by-default example of how to not make a sequel. Despite the less-than shining audience reviews, the mere mention of the film is enough to start fresh debates even after 30 years of its release and even Paramount Pictures is all for a sequel. But Coppola has confessed that he has no plans of revisiting the franchise and is “done” with creating more The Godfather films.&
Recently a re-cut version of 1990’s The Godfather Part III, Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone got a limited theatrical release with positive reviews, even though many have observed that not much has been changed in the new version. The release of the film has given way to renewed discussions about a fourth film in the franchise. While Paramount has no currents plans, they have outlined that “given the enduring power of its legacy it remains a possibility if the right story emerges.”&
But Francis Ford Coppola has strongly re-confirmed his earlier sentiments regarding any future films in the Godfather saga- he will not be directing any of them if they ever happen.
“Me and ‘The Godfather’ are done now. There is more that [screenwriter] Mario Puzo wrote that we never used. But I don’t own ‘The Godfather,’ Paramount owns ‘The Godfather,’ and they may well decide to make more films. I feel that I’ve made my trilogy. I have other fish to fry. Releasing a movie is like following a sports team. You always sigh. Relief always follows the release of a movie, even if it’s a feeling of despondency.”
Coppola had earlier stated that Mario Puzo’s The Godfather, Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone is “an acknowledgement of Mario’s and my preferred title and our original intentions for what became ‘The Godfather: Part III.'” He worked hard to perfect the updated finale to his The Godfather trilogy, including a 4K scan of the original negative, a frame-by-frame restoration of both the old and new version, as well as formulating a new beginning and end. But the filmmaker has made it explicit that he is not interested in taking the franchise any further as he wants to “make a film about the future.”
“You know the Alfred, Lord Tennyson quote? ‘For I dipped into the future, far as human eye could see, saw the vision of the world, and all the wonder that would be…’ That’s the movie I want to make. It would be called ‘Megalopolis’,” he added. “I’m 81 so I hope I have enough years to make it. I want to give the children of the world a vision of the future that is beautiful. That is positive. That is a heaven on Earth because I really think we can have that.”
Mario Puzo’s The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone is currently in cinemas and is all set to make its debut on digital as well as on Blu-ray from December 8, 2020. This news comes to us via The Guardian.