After Al Pacino was nearly fired from the The Godfather, he went on to earn an Academy Award nomination and international fame for his searing portrayal of a soft-spoken son of a Mafia boss who reluctantly took over the reigns from his father, Vito Corleone. (Oscar-winner Marlon Brando). So when the second installment of this epic came out two years later in 1974, folks naturally assumed that Pacino’s Michael Corleone would dominate the film. But an equally talented, if not better actor, Robert De Niro,delivered a dynamic performance and won a Best Supporting Actor award for playing Don Vito Corleone’s earlier incarnation.
