Question 1

True or false: In The Godfather, the cat in the opening scene was a stray that wandered onto the set and Brando used it.

Accepted Answer

True. The cat was not in the script. It was a stray found on the Paramount lot. Brando began petting it during the scene, and the sound crew had to hide its purring mic.

Question 2

True or false: In The Godfather, the horse head in the bed scene was a real horse head obtained from a dog food company.

Accepted Answer

True. The production designer sourced a real horse head from a dog food company; the horse had already been slaughtered for pet food, so no animals were killed for the film.

Question 3

True or false: During Vito Corleone's opening scene, the cat on Marlon Brando's lap was a stray that wandered onto the set.

Accepted Answer

True. The cat was not in the script; it wandered onto the Paramount lot and Francis Ford Coppola placed it on Brando's lap. Its loud purring had to be removed with ADR.

Question 4

True or false: In The Godfather, the orange in every scene is a subtle symbol of death or impending doom.

Accepted Answer

False. This is a popular fan theory, but director Coppola and the cinematographer have said the oranges were just a visual motif, not a deliberate death symbol.

Question 5

True or false: Marlon Brando ad-libbed the famous 'I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse' line.

Accepted Answer

False. The line was written by Mario Puzo and adapted for the script. Brando did improvise the cat scene, not this iconic dialogue.

Question 6

True or false: Al Pacino was the first choice to play Michael Corleone and was cast immediately.

Accepted Answer

False. Pacino was not the first choice; executives wanted Robert Redford or Warren Beatty. Coppola fought for Pacino, who was nearly unknown and almost replaced after screen tests.

Question 7

True or false: Francis Ford Coppola was fired from the film multiple times during production.

Accepted Answer

False. Paramount considered firing Coppola several times over budget and casting disagreements but never actually dismissed him; producer Robert Evans and well-received dailies saved his job.

Question 8

True or false: The Godfather is the only film series to have three films nominated for Best Picture.

Accepted Answer

False. This is a common myth. Only the first two won Best Picture; Part III was nominated but did not win. Also, the Lord of the Rings trilogy all won or were nominated.

The Godfather Trivia Questions