How Al Pacino almost never made it to The Godfather

Al Pacino may have never been part of the iconic movie The Godfather if it weren’t for one person stepping in to insist he take on the role.

As the film celebrates its 50th anniversary with a panel discussion at the ongoing Tribeca Film Festival, the 82-year-old actor shared that the makers of The Godfather "were going to let me go".

However, it was director Francis Ford who stepped in and told them that he "believes" in him.

"They were going to let me go. Francis said, 'I want you to know, I believe in you.' Francis pushes that scene forward," he said.

"The said sequence in the 1972 mafia crime-drama is when Al Pacino had to shoot mobster Michael kills Virgil Sollozzo and cop McCluskey to commit to his family, who is knee-deep in crime world," news18 reported.

However, that scene later became one of the best scenes of the film having later generated sequels.