Noticias

The Godfather Casting Battle ( Photo Credit – Instagram )

Francis Ford Coppola had a vision for The Godfather, but turning that vision into reality was anything but smooth. According to The Mirror, long before cameras started rolling, the film nearly took shape with a completely different cast. Today, it’s hard to picture anyone other than Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, or Diane Keaton in their roles, but things could have gone very differently.

Al Pacino Was Almost Fired From The Godfather Early In Production

Coppola had to push hard to keep his preferred actors in the film. Even Al Pacino, now iconic as Michael Corleone, was nearly fired after the first week, as the studio wasn’t convinced he could carry the role. Coppola, feeling the pressure himself, sat down with Pacino to review the early footage, and much to his displeasure, it wasn’t landing the way he hoped. Pacino later...

If you’re telling a story that involves an old priest, a young priest and a possessed girl and you aren’t The Exorcist, you have taken on the kind of challenge that would terrify Beelzebub himself. Director David Midell has made a decent attempt on it here, and if the result ultimately feels like just another wannabe, he has at least assembled an interesting cast to stab at hell’s heart.

This film is based, we are told repeatedly, on the most thoroughly documented exorcisms in American history. Dan Stevens plays the scribe, young Father Joseph Steiger, while Al Pacino is the old priest, Father Theophilus Riesinger, a name so perfect it had to be real. Steiger, who has recently suffered a loss in the family, is reluctant to take charge of the disturbed Emma (Abigail Cowen). Priest or no, he’s a modern guy and sure that her...

With a growing number of popular television series, an enduring line of blockbuster movies, and countless multimedia merchandising, "Star Wars" is one of the biggest franchises in the world. And with so many iconic performances throughout the series' extensive history, it's hard to imagine anyone else playing many of these beloved characters. However, some of the most prominent roles across the franchise nearly saw casting opportunities and changes that would've shocked even the most hardcore "Star Wars" fans. Simply put, deeply associated actors like Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford weren't always a lock for Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, respectively.

This distinction wasn't limited to the original "Star Wars" trilogy but also the prequels, the sequel trilogy, and the various shows and spinoff movies the franchise has seen in recent years. These often involve the biggest parts in a given project, before the casting that we all know and love took place.

Lindsay Lohan is ready to bring on the dramatics.

In her cover story for Elle’s 2025 summer issue, Lohan opened up about starring in Count My Lies, a drama that’s in development at Hulu and based on a novel by Sophie Stava. The role will mark the actress’s first scripted TV series.

“I love the book. But when I was reading it, I had to put it down for a day because I was like, ‘I’m stressed now,’’ Lohan said in the conversation with Saturday Night Live’s Chloe Fineman. “But I liked that. It’s going to be nice to do something different.”

The project is also different given that she doesn’t have a romantic interest, Lohan said. “I was talking to the writers and showrunners yesterday and told them, ‘I don’t know if you realize, but this is the first time where I...

Pacino is somewhat flat and Dan Stevens seems to be waiting for the final curtain as they with a young woman in Iowa apparently possessed by a demon

This low-budget, minor-key and – frankly – dreary horror feature offers yet another dramatisation of the 1928 exorcism of a young woman (played here by Abigail Cowen), known by her alias Anna Ecklund and her real name Emma Schmidt. The real-life ritual, which transpired at a nunnery in Iowa, was overseen by elderly German Capuchin priest Father Theophilus Riesinger (Al Pacino) and local cleric Father Joseph Steiger (Dan Stevens) and written up as a pamphlet (“Begone Satan!”) that went on to shape the public understanding of exorcisms.

All that historical detail is transfused into a weak tea of a script, credited to the film’s director David Midell and Enrico Natale. They have generated a work that is a little more interested in background and...

The first season of Apple TV+ hit comedy The Studio was full of cameos, all happy to set up themselves and the business of filmmaking. The likes of Martin Scorsese, Olivia Wilde, and Ron Howard all starred in the first season of the Seth Rogen comedy. With the streamer already announcing the second season, the writers and actors are already putting in requests for the next batch of cameo stars.

The writer/actor is desperate for Daniel Day-Lewis to appear in the second series of The Studio. “He’s the greatest living actor,” Rogen told Variety at Apple TV+’s FYC event in Hollywood. “His process is so specific that I think that would be an interesting thing to explore on the show.”

Catherine O'Hara, Zoe Kravitz, and Ike Barinholtz in "The Studio," now streaming on Apple TV+.

The Superbad actor hasn’t reached out to the three-time Oscar winner.

Al Pacino played the devil in The Devil's Advocate (1997), and now he's exorcising the devil out of a young woman in The Ritual alongside Dan Stevens, Patricia Heaton, and Ashley Greene. Based on the real inspiration behind The Exorcist, Pacino plays Father Theophilus Riesinger, the priest who conducted the real-life exorcism. Watch the new trailer, check out the poster and details behind the true story.

Seth Rogen's hit series The Studio lampoons Hollywood with the help of many big-name guest stars brought in to play themselves. The series will be back for a second season, likely with many new exciting guests, but Rogen may have some trouble getting the one he wants most of all.

Per Variety, Rogen said how he's really hoping to get semi-retired actor Daniel Day-Lewis on The Studio. This is in part because Day-Lewis is the "greatest living actor" in the eyes of Rogen, though he's certainly not alone with that opinion. It may be a long shot to get Day-Lewis involved, as the Oscar-winning actor has largely stepped back from performing in recent years, but Rogen feels that he may be influenced to come on board if he hears the pitch they have in mind.

“He’s the greatest living actor,” Rogen said at Apple TV+'s FYC event in Hollywood.

The Butterfly Effect is a concept that describes how small actions can have big consequences in the distant future. Well, if you believe in fan theories, it seems that’s what happened with Denzel Washington back in 1993, leading to a devastating snub. That year, Al Pacino won the Oscar for Best Actor in a Leading Role for his role in Scent of a Woman, and Washington was also on the nomination list.

However, iconic director Spike Lee revealed all these years later that the Oscar should have rightfully gone to Denzel Washington instead of Pacino back in 1993!

The Oscar that could have gone to Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington found worldwide fame and critical acclaim for his role as Malcolm Little in the 1992 film Malcolm X. With a controversial storyline and Spike Lee helming the director’s seat, the film did find unprecedented fame, and Washington received an Oscar nomination for Best Actor.

At a Cannes press conference for his new film “Highest 2 Lowest” on Tuesday, Spike Lee reflected on his five collaborations with Denzel Washington — and said he should have won the best actor Oscar in 1993 over Al Pacino.

“‘Malcolm X,’ what he did with that film was amazing,” Lee said. “And no disrespect to my brother Al Pacino, I love him. But Denzel, in my opinion, should have won.”

Pacino ended up taking home the gold for his performance in Martin Brest’s “Scent of a Woman,” and Washington eventually won the best actor trophy in 2002 for “Training Day.” However, Lee added that he doesn’t measure his success with awards.

“With these awards, it’s like basketball, where the ref blows a call and you have to make a call. So the make a call I think was ‘Training Day,’ which he won an Oscar for,” Lee said. “But...

It’s hard to overstate the influence of The Godfather on the medium as a whole, and it’s also hard to pinpoint its success to just one figure. But amidst the brilliance of all the ensemble cast, whether it’s Marlon Brando’s Don Corleone or Al Pacino’s Michael Corleone, it was John Cazale’s Fredo that really was the heart of the first two movies.

Moreover, while Cazale’s career was short-lived, it left an indelible mark on cinema, and Al Pacino, arguably one of the greats of all time, was always fascinated with Cazale, even before uniting in The Godfather series.

Al Pacino recounted his fascination with John Cazale John Cazale as Fredo Corleone in The Godfather | Credit: Paramount Pictures

While Michael Corleone’s tragic descent encapsulates the themes of The Godfather, amidst Al Pacino and the rest of the cast’s brilliance, John Cazale‘s...

Francis Ford Coppola’s seminal work, The Godfather, faced several challenges during its production. Coppola’s life was made hell when he was filming the classic crime film. He mostly blamed the leadership at Paramount for the difficult production. However, he pushed through all the odds to make the Oscar-winning film with Marlon Brando and Al Pacino.

The Apocalypse Now director shared that most of his choices for the film were met with objections from the studio. He revealed during a 2022 interview that he was on the verge of getting fired multiple times throughout the production. Notably, Paramount was going through a rough period at the time, which probably made them question Coppola’s every demand.

Francis Ford Coppola detailed the challenges he faced during The Godfather shoot Francis Ford Coppola with Marlon Brando on the set of The Godfather | Credits: Paramount Pictures

Francis Ford Coppola had the worst experience...

Al Pacino is racing off to join the cast of Bobby Moresco’s Maserati: The Brothers.

Per intel sent by the producers Thursday in Cannes, the second and “final phase” of filming will start in Rome in June, and the filmmakers are eyeing a fall debut. Maserati: The Brothers chronicles the rise of the Maserati family and their legacy in the world of automotive innovation.

Pacino will portray businessman Vincenzo Vaccaro, a champion of Maserati family and an early investor in the auto dynasty. In the biopic, produced by Andrea Iervolino, Pacino and newly cast actors Gina La Piana and Tatiana Luter join previously announced cast of Anthony Hopkins, Andy Garcia, Jessica Alba, Michele Morrone and Salvatore Esposito.

Nicki Cortese and Wayne Marc Godfrey of Bright White Light are co-financing and executive producing the project.

In a statement, Iervolin said the team is “thrilled” to have Pacino join the cast.

Al Pacino has joined the cast of “Maserati: The Brothers,” the biopic directed by Bobby Moresco about the family behind the high-performance automobiles that, along with Ferrari and Lamborghini, Italy is known for.

Pacino’s cameo in the film was announced by producer Andrea Iervolino. A rep for Pacino did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In “Maserati” Pacino will be playing businessman Vincenzo Vaccaro, who supported the Maserati family and invested in the early days of the company. Also joining the star-studded film’s cast are Gina La Piana (“Intentional”) and Tatiana Luter (“Rudy Valentino”), according to a Iervolino statement.

Previously announced “Maserati” cast comprises Anthony Hopkins, Andy Garcia, Jessica Abla, Michele Morrone and Salvatore Esposito.

Maserati was founded in 1914 in a garage in the central Italian city of Bologna by three brothers: Alfieri, Ettore and Ernesto. The trident that is the company’s emblem is a...

Oscar winner Al Pacino has joined the cast of biographical drama Maserati: The Brothers, featuring Anthony Hopkins, Andy Garcia, Jessica Alba, Michele Morrone and Salvatore Esposito.

Also joining the cast are Gina La Piana and Tatiana Luter while Nicki Cortese and Wayne Marc Godfrey from Bright White Light are aboard to co-finance and executive-produce the project.

The second and final phase of filming will start in June in Rome with a plan to premiere in early fall 2025.

Maserati: The Brothers chronicles the rise of the Maserati family and their pioneering legacy in the world of automotive innovation. Al Pacino will portray businessman Vincenzo Vaccaro, who has supported the Maserati family and invested in the early days of the company.

Producer Andrea Iervolino stated: “We are thrilled to welcome Al Pacino to Maserati: The Brothers. His unparalleled talent and iconic presence bring a profound depth to our portrayal of this inspiring and emotional story.

In the early ’70s, something shifted. Audiences were tired of squeaky-clean heroes and neat endings. They wanted grit, truth, and a little chaos. So, the cops on screen got messier, tougher, angrier, and more real. But while most were busy bending the law to get justice, one dared to challenge the whole system from the inside.

Frank Serpico, a different kind of cop for a different kind of story. Just an officer willing to risk everything to call out the corruption around him. He wasn’t out for glory, he was out for the truth.

Taking on the challenge on screen was Al Pacino, still early in his rise but already chasing roles that meant something. Fresh off the success of The Godfather, he could’ve played it safe, but instead, he dove headfirst into the life of a man who stood alone. So what pulled him into Frank Serpico’s world?...

It’s crazy to think that The Godfather almost didn’t have Al Pacino in it, mostly because Pacino himself couldn’t wrap his head around why Francis Ford Coppola even wanted him. The guy who went on to own the very role of Michael Corleone was seriously confused about being cast in one of cinema’s most iconic films.

At the time, he was just a stage actor with barely any screen time under his belt. But Coppola saw something no one else did. And that one gamble changed Pacino’s life and gave us one of the coolest slow-burn transformations in movie history.

Al Pacino still wonders why Coppola bet on him for The Godfather Al Pacino as Michael Corleone in The Godfather Part II | Credits: Paramount Pictures

Al Pacino still can’t quite believe it. Reflecting on the The Godfather casting that changed cinema history during an interview with The Talks,...

Imagine a world where Han Solo had a little thick voice, and he carried a gun similar to a gangster with a leaned-in posture. Doesn’t look right, right? However, that would have been the character of Han Solo had Al Pacino not refused the script for Star Wars!

The actor, who talked about his regrets (which he prefers to call ‘mistakes’), talked about turning down the role of Han Solo in the Star Wars franchise, having life lessons learnt the hard way, and more in an interview.

Al Pacino regrets turning down the script for Star Wars!

Visionary director George Lucas directed and released Star Wars: Episode IV -A New Hope in 1977. The film featured Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, and Harrison Ford as the main leads and went on to earn millions at the global box office.

Harrison Ford portrayed the role of Han Solo in the Star Wars franchise | Credits: Lucasfilm

However,...

Almost nothing about Shia Labeouf’s involvement with Orphans went the right way. In 2013, the actor was slated to make his Broadway debut with a lead role in the play, but ultimately exited the project due to “creative differences.” It ultimately boiled down to an internal feud with Alec Baldwin, who entered the production as a replacement for Al Pacino. Part of their sparring was related to process, but the other part had to do with Labeouf being in an unsettled headspace as someone who was living in Central Park.

Montreal’s Fantasia International Film Festival unveiled the first wave of its upcoming 29th edition on Thursday, a boisterous roster that brings new work from Hwang Wook,the Adams Family, Steve Pink, Julie Pacino, and Brock Bodell.

One year after debuting Mash Ville at Fantasia, South Korea’s Hwang returns with The Woman, a psychological thriller starring Han Hye-ji in which a girl pursues a mysterious stranger after an innocent act results in her friend’s suspicious suicide.

The first wave includesMother Of Fliesfrom John and Zelda Adams and Toby Poser, about a woman who seeks dark magic from a...

Shia Labeouf is getting candid about his struggles.

The 38-year-old actor revealed in a new interview that at one point in his life, while he was working on a Broadway play, he was “sleeping in Central Park.”

Shia spoke with The Hollywood Reporter alongside his Henry Johnson director David Mamet, and reflected on a point in his life when he was “not in a good way” while working on the play Orphans, which he eventually dropped out of.

Shia also recalled the tensions between himself and Alec Baldwin on Orphans ahead of him dropping out of the project, but said that they eventually “made it right.”

Keep reading to find out more…

“By the time Baldwin got there, it was almost unfair. So he’s dealing with both my fractured little weak ego, right? All this hard prep that I’d done for two years, and my desperate need to show him all my prep,...

James Foley, director of films including “Glengarry Glen Ross,” “At Close Range” and “Fear,” died at his home in Los Angeles earlier this week.

He died after a year-long struggle with brain cancer, according to a rep.

Foley worked with stars including Sean Penn, Madonna, Al Pacino and Halle Berry, and specialized in atmosphere-soaked, noir-adjacent stories.

His first feature was 1984’s musical romance drama “Reckless,” starring Daryl Hannah and Aidan Quinn. Foley followed that with “At Close Range,” starring Penn and Christopher Walken in a neo-noir that included the Madonna song “Live to Tell.” Madonna was married to Penn at the time, and Foley went on to work with Madonna several times, directing music videos and her feature “Who’s That Girl.” The screwball comedy bombed, and Foley told FilmInk, “It was a major life experience. That first failure is so shocking.”

“Glengarry Glen Ross” was one of his most high-profile films,...

James Foley, the Brooklyn-born filmmaker who collaborated with A-list stars like Al Pacino, Sean Penn, Madonna and Mark Wahlberg across a 30-plus-year career in film, TV and music videos, has died. He was 71.

Foley’s rep said Thursday he died “peacefully in his sleep earlier this week following a yearslong struggle with brain cancer.”

Born on Dec. 28, 1953, and raised in New York, Foley graduated from high school and went on to study film at New York University followed by USC in Los Angeles. It was during his final year of film school that a chance meeting would change the course of his life and jump start his career behind the camera.

“I was very lucky, and in the perverse calculus of Hollywood I was in the last year of film school and shared a house with a guy. There was a woman who was pursuing my friend so we had this film school party,...

Filmmaker Julie Pacino, producer and daughter of actor Al Pacino, makes her feature directorial debut with I Live Here Now. Pacino’s debut is set to premiere at Fantasia this summer, bringing a first look at the Lynchian psychodrama.

I Live Here Now was announced in Fantasia’s first wave of programming.

Night Teeth and Bright actor Lucy Fry stars as “Rose, a woman haunted by trauma and trapped in a motel where reality unravels, the film blurs the lines between past and present, dream and waking life, captured in vivid 16mm.”

Fantasia’s description provides additional insight, stating Pacino’s debut is about “competing anxieties: the pursuit of perfection, the weight of generational trauma, and the invisible fist of capitalism tightening its grip around the necks of its characters.” It’s also described as a “vibrant and nightmarish psychodrama” that “reverberates with echoes of David Lynch, Dario Argento, and the Coen brothers.

Italian producer Andrea Iervolino has boarded “Captivated,” a mob thriller starring Al Pacino and Katie Holmes that seeks to provide a different take on the kidnapping of John Paul Getty III than Ridley Scott’s “All the Money in the World.” The long-gestating film is set to start shooting in Rome later this month.

“Captivated,” directed by Dito Montiel, tells the story of the 1973 kidnapping of Getty III and the unexpected bond between Calabrian mafia boss Saro Mammoliti (to be played by Pacino in his older version) and Gail Getty, mother of Getty III, to be played by Holmes.

They are “two souls from completely different worlds, drawn together by a tragedy that will forever change their lives,” says the provided synopsis. “Amid psychological tension and subtle desire, theirs is a seductive game of chess that adds a crucial layer to the mystery of the Getty kidnapping.”

Meadow Walker and...

The horror genre is full of good exorcism stories which fans love to revisit in the spooky season, the thrill of the story, the win of good over evil, the laborious effort and faith that goes into saving a soul, and the jump scares are the ropes that excite the audience the most. Adding to the list of exciting exorcism-based movies is The Ritual, which will scare up theatres this June. Based on real-life events, the movie stars Al Pacino and Dan Stevens as priests doing their best to save the soul of a young girl, Emma Schmidt (Abigail Cowen).

Now, a new trailer gives us a good look at their efforts and the way their faith is tested. The clip showcases Stevens as a young priest who doubts the faith of an older priest played by Pacino. However, it all changes when they come across a young girl, Emma,...

Al Pacino and Dan Stevens star in The Ritual, an upcoming theatrical release from XYZ Films, directed by David Midell and scheduled to open in theaters on June 6. The film brings together a cast that also features Ashley Greene, Patricia Heaton, Abigail Cowen, and Ritchie Montgomery.

Set against the backdrop of a remote community plagued by spiritual crisis, the story follows two Roman Catholic priests sent to investigate a young woman believed to be possessed. Pacino plays Father Theophilus Riesinger, a veteran cleric with an unwavering belief in the presence of evil. Stevens takes on the role of Father Joseph Steiger, a younger priest more inclined toward medical and psychological explanations.

The film presents the two clergymen with conflicting worldviews as they attempt to determine the nature of the woman’s condition. In the trailer, Pacino’s character warns of divine warfare. “We are the Lord’s army in this battle,...

You've seen The Exorcist. You've seen the movie about the making of The Exorcist, The Exorcism. Now, prepare to see the movie about the exorcists and the exorcism that inspired The Exorcist. Yes, David Midell's upcoming possession chiller The Ritual is set to see Al Pacino and Dan Stevens play real-life priests Theophilus Riesinger and Father Joseph Steiger, whose 1928 exorcism of Emma Schmidt — chronicled in Carl Vogl's controversial 1935 book Begone Satan! A Soul-tiring Account Of Diaboloical Possession In Iowa — served as the inspiration for William Friedkin's horror magnum opus. The power of Christ compels you... to check out the trailer below:

As possession horror trailers go, this one's certainly hitting all the well-worn genre grooves: talk of "the armour of God"; restraints, convulsions, and flinging furniture; distorted, unholy voices; and a couple of priests — one the wily old fundamentalist, the other a green young sceptic — experiencing the ultimate crisis of faith.

Al Pacino and Dan Stevens team up to perform an exorcism in The Ritual, a new horror film based on the true events that inspired The Exorcist.

XYZ Films has released the first official trailer for The Ritual, a new exorcism horror movie starring Pacino and Stevens. According to IndieWire, the film is based on the real-life exorcism of Emma Schmidt, an infamous case that was documented in the 1935 book Begone Satan!, which would later inspire The Exorcist novel and movie written by William Peter Blatty. The Ritual follows "two priests—one questioning his faith (Stevens) and one reckoning with a troubled past (Pacino)—must work together to perform a series of terrifying exorcisms to save the young woman’s soul," per the official synopsis. Check out the first official trailer for The Ritual below.

The Ritual is directed by David Midell, best known for NightLights and The Killing of Kenneth Chamberlain.

Al Pacino and Dan Stevens have differing methods of spreading their faith in the trailer for The Ritual.

Director David Midell’s feature is set to hit theaters June 6 from XYZ Films. Ashley Greene, Patricia Heaton, Abigail Cowen and Ritchie Montgomery round out the cast.

The Ritual focuses on Father Theophilus Riesinger (Pacino) and Father Joseph Steiger (Stevens) as they aim to assist a young woman who appears to be possessed by demons.

“We are the Lord’s army in this battle,” Pacino says in the trailer. “She is touched by something otherworldly.”

Later, Stevens asks, “What if what she really needs is a doctor?” This leads Pacino to respond, “We are paying a price for your lack of faith.”

The Ritual is inspired by the 1935 book Begone Satan!, which has been at the center of faith-based debate for nearly a century. Midell helmed the movie from a script he co-wrote with Enrico Natale.

If your childhood was destroyed by watching William Friedkin’s The Exorcist, then boy, do we have a new movie for you. The Ritual, written and directed by David Midell, is based on the real-life story said to have inspired The Exorcist. And now, we have an official trailer that reveals the hells that await in the new XYZ horror film…

In the film, “Two priests, one questioning his faith (Stevens) and one reckoning with a troubled past (Pacino), must put aside their differences to save a possessed young woman through a difficult and dangerous series of exorcisms.“

Watch the official trailer below:

Emma Schmidt’s exorcism, said to be the most documented exorcism of all time, was originally chronicled in the 1935 book Begone Satan!. The book contains interviews and firsthand accounts from individuals who claimed to be present for the exorcism and witness Schmidt’s behavior with their own eyes.

Al Pacino has played the Devil before (in the 1997 film The Devil’s Advocate), and earlier this year we learned that he would be playing an enemy of the Devil in the exorcism horror film The Ritual. Taking on the role of a troubled priest, Pacino stars in the film alongside Dan Stevens of Abigail and Godzilla x Kong, who also plays a troubled priest. We’ll get to see how well this troubled duo fares against Satan when XYZ Films gives The Ritual a North American theatrical release on June 6th, with Altitude giving audiences in UK and Irish cinemas the chance to see the movie a week earlier, on May 30th. With those dates swiftly approaching, a new trailer for the film has dropped online and you can check it out in the embed above.

Based on a true story, The Ritual will center on two priests — one questioning...

The true story that inspired horror classic The Exorcist comes to the screen in The Ritual from XYZ Films, and the official trailer has been unleashed this morning. Watch it below.

Al Pacino and Dan Stevens head into the exorcism arena for the upcoming horror movie The Ritual, which will be released exclusively in movie theaters on June 6, 2025.

Sanctioned by the Church. Condemned by Satan. Based on the true story of the possession of Emma Schmidt, David Midell directs from a script he co-wrote with Enrico Natale.

Two priests, one questioning his faith (Stevens) and one reckoning with a troubled past (Pacino), must put aside their differences to save a possessed young woman through a difficult and dangerous series of exorcisms.

The film is said to be an authentic portrayal of the Schmidt case, which remains the most thoroughly documented exorcism in American history. Learn the truth: theritualmovie.com.

Ashley Greene...

Dan Stevens, who has become synonymous with indie horror, is paired with icon Al Pacino for the ultimate exorcism film, “The Ritual.” The duo star as two priests who “face the ultimate test of faith,” as the logline teases. The film is based on the true story that was captured in 1935 book “Begone Satan!” about a Church-sanctioned exorcism. The original account of the events went on to inspire “The Exorcist” book and William Friedkin’s famed 1973 film that later spurred a franchise.

The official synopsis for “The Ritual” reads: “When the Church sanctions the exorcism of Emma Schmidt (Abigail Cowan), two priests — divided by doubt — must confront a force beyond comprehension… and their own faith.” Ashley Greene and Patricia Heaton co-star.

Pacino recently told Entertainment Weekly that after starring in “The Ritual,” he can finally watch Friedkin’s “The Exorcist.” Pacino worked with the late auteur on “Cruising,” which was...

Jack Nicholson Turned Down Michael Corleone In The Godfather ( Photo Credit – Instagram )

The release of The Godfather marked the entry of a true cinematic marvel in theatres. With its rich and nuanced storytelling, the story became a classic hit, thanks to the powerful performance delivered by its actors. One such signature character from the movie was Michael Corleone, played by Al Pacino.

But here’s something not everyone knows: the role of Michael Corleone, Pacino’s iconic breakout, almost went to someone else entirely. And not just anyone, it practically went to Jack Nicholson, arguably Hollywood’s most charismatic actor of his generation. Before Pacino ever delivered that cold-blooded line, “It’s not personal, Sonny. It’s strictly business,” the role was of Jack’s to take.

Jack Nicholson, riding high off the success of Easy Rider and already becoming a household name, was in a prime position. Studio heads saw the commercial appeal.

The devil is in the details this summer as The Ritual, a harrowing supernatural horror rooted in historical fact, arrives in UK and Irish cinemas on 30 May. Starring screen icon Al Pacino and genre regular Dan Stevens, the film is inspired by the infamous case of Emma Schmidt, whose documented exorcisms in 1928 remain some of the most chilling accounts in American religious history.

Directed by David Midell and co-written with longtime collaborator Enrico Natale, The Ritual promises to deliver a grounded yet terrifying portrait of spiritual warfare. Pacino steps into the role of Father Theophilus Riesinger, a German-American priest whose real-life attempts to banish the demonic from Schmidt’s tormented body became legend within Catholic and paranormal circles alike. Stevens portrays Father Joseph Steiger, a younger priest whose scepticism and fractured past make him a reluctant ally in the fight for Emma’s soul.

The film also stars Ashley Greene...

Gerard Butler is one of those actors who exists in a category all of his own: a subgenre unto himself. 2018’s Den Of Thieves was among the better of Butler’s prolific recent output, the film that introduced the world to the classically Butlerian role of ‘Big Nick’ O’Brien: a grizzled detective in the Los Angeles Major Crimes Unit with a shit-eating grin, a disastrous home life, a chain-smoking cigarette habit, and a distaste for playing things by the book.

The first film established a kind of trashy, brashy take on Michael Mann’s Heat: a two-sides-of-the-same-coin cops-and-robbers relationship between Butler’s Big Nick and Pablo Schreiber's bank robber Ray Merrimen. That frenemy dynamic returns, this time between Big Nick and O’Shea Jackson Jr's heist mastermind Donnie.

Look, nobody’s saying they’re De Niro and Pacino, but the dynamic between Big Nick and Donnie gets more interesting in this sequel,...

Al Pacino has played the Devil before (in the 1997 film The Devil’s Advocate), and earlier this year we learned that he would be playing an enemy of the Devil in the exorcism horror film The Ritual. Taking on the role of a troubled priest, Pacino stars in the film alongside Dan Stevens of Abigail and Godzilla x Kong, who also plays a troubled priest. We’ll get to see how well this troubled duo fares against Satan when XYZ Films gives The Ritual a North American theatrical release on June 6th, with Altitude giving audiences in UK and Irish cinemas the chance to see the movie a week earlier, on May 30th. With those dates swiftly approaching, a trailer for The Ritual has dropped online, and you can check it out in the embed above.

Based on a true story, The Ritual will center on two priests — one questioning his...

Basada en el exorcismo de Emma Schmidt. © Inopia Films

Inopia Films ha anunciado la fecha de estreno en nuestro país del film de terror exorcista The Ritual, dirigido por David Midell (El asesinato de Kenneth Chamberlain).

En The Ritual, inspirada en el célebre caso real del exorcismo de Emma Schmidt –considerado uno de los más documentados del siglo Xx–, cuando una joven es poseída por una entidad demoníaca implacable, dos sacerdotes de mundos opuestos deberán unir sus fuerzas: uno es un veterano exorcista (Pacino) atormentado por su propio fracaso en un caso anterior; el otro es un sacerdote joven (Stevens) que se cuestiona su fe. Juntos se adentrarán en un ritual que pondrá a prueba sus creencias, su cordura y sus vidas.

La película, basada está protagonizada por Al Pacino, Dan Stevens y Ashley Green (saga Crepúsculo).

En una entrevista para Our Sunday Visitor, Midell describió la película como una...

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

This year marks the 30th anniversary of Michael Mann's classic crime thriller "Heat," which famously saw legendary actors Al Pacino and Robert De Niro appear in the same scene together for the first time despite having previously co-starred in "The Godfather Part II." The "Heat" diner scene, in which Pacino's world-weary cop, Vincent Hanna, sits down across from De Niro's stoic thief, Neil McCauley, has been an obsession for a certain type of cinephile for years, and has been the subject of homages from across the film and TV spectrum, including most recently in "Daredevil: Born Again." Before the closing night screening of "Heat" at the 2025 TCM Classic Film Festival, Pacino and writer/director Michael Mann participated in a Q&a where they spoke about that moment and how it felt on set at the time.

Pacino spoke...

On a night saluting the independence and go-for-broke cinematic life of Francis Ford Coppola, Al Pacino perhaps best summed up why the legendary filmmaker has opted out of accepting many honors over the decades by quoting Coppola himself, who once said, “The things you do when you’re young that you get fired for, are the same things that years later, they give you lifetime achievement awards for.”

Well Coppola, finally on the 50th anniversary of the AFI Life Achievement Award dinners, got the most prestigious one of all for movie makers, and having been to numerous of these AFI events over the decades (Frank Capra’s in 1982 was my first), this warm and very starry evening Saturday was among the very best, and certainly one of the best attended by other legends and past AFI honorees themselves.

No less than seven, count ’em, seven past AFI Life Achievement Award...

Although Robert De Niro was passed over for The Godfather, his starring role in the sequel turned out to be the offer he couldn’t refuse.

While paying tribute to director Francis Ford Coppola with the AFI Life Achievement Award, he and co-star Al Pacino reminisced about their time with the filmmaker on his seminal mafia film franchise.

“Francis, thank you for not casting me in The Godfather,” said De Niro during Saturday’s gala at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. “It was the best job I ever, never got. And it meant I was available for The Godfather Part II. Francis, you changed my career, you changed my life. We’re all here tonight because of you. We love you.”

Following Pacino’s breakout performance as Michael Corleone in 1972’s adaptation of Mario Puzo’s book, the 1974 sequel followed the parallel paths of father and son with De...

Francis Ford Coppola, one of cinema’s most influential auteurs, was honored with the 50th AFI Life Achievement Award on Saturday at a star-studded gala at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Seated alongside Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, his filmmaker son Roman Coppola, and granddaughter Gia Coppola, the visionary behind The Godfather trilogy, Apocalypse Now, and The Conversation was celebrated in a way only he could inspire: with reverence, love, and a whole lot of family.

The night was a retrospective of the Academy Award-winning director, writer, and producer's career, highlighting friendships with Harrison Ford, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Ralph Macchio, Diane Lane, Dustin Hoffman, and C. Thomas Howell, among others.

Speaking to Gold Derby on the red carpet before the gala, Coppola reflected on a constant in his creative process: connecting with actors before cameras roll.

"I always ask for a couple of weeks [to get time with the actors before a project starts],” he said. “If I'm lucky,...

Francis Ford Coppola was honored by a star-studded group of friends and collaborators on Saturday night as he received this year’s AFI Life Achievement Award at the Dolby Theatre.

Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Adam Driver, Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Dustin Hoffman, Ron Howard, C. Thomas Howell, Diane Lane, Spike Lee, Ralph Macchio, son Roman and granddaughter Gia all took part in the American Film Institute event, this year celebrating its landmark 50th anniversary.

Freeman kicked things off by joking that although he had “never, ever been in a movie written, directed or produced by Francis Ford Coppola,” he had profoundly moved by his films. Celebrating Coppola for being an independent filmmaker, Freeman called him a “weaver of dreams on a dime, teller of tales that cost and lost millions — but tonight, fuck the bankers and the backers. We are here to celebrate art and...

Francis Ford Coppola was celebrated Saturday night at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles as he received the 50th AFI Life Achievement Award, the highest recognition from the American Film Institute. The evening brought together many of Hollywood’s most respected names, including Steven Spielberg, George Lucas, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Harrison Ford, Adam Driver, Morgan Freeman, and Spike Lee.

Spielberg and Lucas, who share decades-long friendships with Coppola, presented the award. Spielberg, recalling their first meeting in 1967, praised Coppola’s openness and creative fearlessness. “On one hand, you are a warrior for independent artists,” Spielberg said. “But also, and always, you’re fearless in how open you are to ideas, opinions and inspiration.” He described watching an early five-hour cut of Apocalypse Now with other filmmakers, highlighting Coppola’s willingness to invite feedback and collaborate in the creative process.

“You have taken what came before and redefined the canon of American film,...

Hollywood legends gathered Saturday night to celebrate Francis Ford Coppola as he received the prestigious AFI Life Achievement Award, the highest honor bestowed by the American Film Institute.

Steven Spielberg and George Lucas presented Coppola with the 50th AFI Life Achievement Award.

Spielberg called Coppola “fearless.” Spielberg, who first met Coppola in 1967, said, “On one hand, you are a warrior for independent artists, you always champion their causes, but also, and always, you’re fearless in how open you are to ideas, opinions and inspiration.”

He recalled watching an early cut of “Apocalypse Now,” which was five hours long, with other filmmakers. “When the film ended, you asked us to tell you what we saw, how we felt. You invited all of us in, so one by one, we told you where we were lost and where we were found, and I sat there in awe, learning that leaving yourself open and searching was,...

The Platino Awards, Ibero-America’s annual film awards ceremony, has got Madrid buzzing, with industry icon Eva Longoria set to pick up the show’s honorary prize on Sunday night.

The biggest filmmakers from central and southern America, Spain and Portugal have flocked to the Spanish capital for the 12th edition of the event, with nominees including the Academy Award-nominated Fernanda Torres for her performance in Walter Salles’ I’m Still Here and Úrsula Corberó in Luis Ortega’s Kill the Jockey.

Among other nominees are Brazilian actor Gabriel Leone for Netflix’s F1 series Senna and Spanish legend Pedro Almodóvar for his English-language debut The Room Next Door, which premiered in Venice last year.

The Hollywood Reporter caught up with Ortega on Saturday to talk politics and his next film.

“I don’t like traveling,” the Argentine, nominated for best director with Kill the Jockey, tells THR, admitting that the...

When Robert Downey Jr. was up for the Best Supporting Actor Oscar at the 96th Academy Awards for Oppenheimer, it was his third time getting nominated. He was first nominated for a movie three decades ago for the Best Actor category. He depicted the real-life legend Charlie Chaplin on the screen in Richard Attenborough’s Chaplin.

The film itself was not that great. Not all critics were happy, and the film bombed at the box office. But what none of them could deny was the brilliant performance of Downey Jr. in the titular role. The Iron Man actor shared that he was terrified of the role because of its challenging nature.

Robert Downey Jr. was terrified of his Oscar-nominated role in Chaplin Robert Downey Jr. as Charlie Chaplin in Chaplin | Credits: TriStar Pictures

Robert Downey Jr. made his movie debut as a child actor in the 1970 film directed by his father,...

When Francis Ford Coppola receives the AFI Life Achievement Award in Hollywood on Saturday, he will be supported by an A-list group of friends, family and former collaborators.

The American Film Institute announced on Tuesday that George Lucas and Steven Spielberg will present the 50th AFI Life Achievement Award to the famed filmmaker at the Dolby Theater. Gia and Roman Coppola, Robert De Niro, Adam Driver, Harrison Ford, Morgan Freeman, Dustin Hoffman, Ron Howard, C. Thomas Howell, Diane Lane, Spike Lee, Ralph Macchio and Al Pacino will also be among the presenters and guests taking part in the event.

“There is only one Francis Ford Coppola,” AFI president and CEO Bob Gazzale said in a statement. “And it is AFI’s honor to gather the art and entertainment communities, along with his family, friends and colleagues to celebrate cinema — all of it and the very best of it.”

The AFI Life Achievement Award...

Al Pacino is the Oscar-winning actor who has starred in dozens of classics throughout his nearly 50 year career, from his star-making breakthrough in "The Godfather" (1972) to his late-career triumph in "The Irishman" (2019). Tour through our photo gallery of Pacino's 25 greatest films, ranked worst to best.

Though an acting legend, it took Pacino 20 years and eight nominations to finally cash in his Oscar I.O.U. for "Scent of a Woman". Prior to that he competed for "The Godfather", "Serpico", "The Godfather, Part II", "Dog Day Afternoon", "... And Justice for All", "Dick Tracy" and "Glengarry Glen Ross", but he didn't win any of those bids.

Surprisingly, his 1992 noms for "Scent of a Woman" and "Glengarry Glen Ross" were followed by a long Academy drought, despite additional critically acclaimed performances in "Heat" (1995), "Donnie Brasco" (1997), "The Insider" (1999) and "Insomnia" (2002). During that time, he became a TV favorite with Emmy-winning turns in "Angels in America...