6. Robert De Niro - The Godfather
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=CQqBXFAlHcU This story of an actor who missed out after a great screen test is one with a happy ending. Before being cast in The Godfather: Part II, Robert De Niro was brought in to screentest for the role of (his future son) Sonny Corleone, a part that eventually (and correctly) went to James Cann. It is alarming how easily Al Pacino and Robert De Niro could be brothers, and with an amazing test like De Niro's, it is incredible that he couldn't get the part. With the hat and the long hair pinned up under it, this Sonny is much different from the curly haired one we see in the movie. Francis Ford Coppola reportedly really wanted James Cann to play Sonny early on, but De Niro's screentest was ultimately unforgettable in Coppola's mind. While James Cann received a Best Supporting Actor Nomination for The Godfather, it was Robert De Niro who won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his performance as young Vito Corleone in The Godfather: Part II.
Quinn Beswick
Contributor
As a child growing up in Los Angeles, Quinn won a singing contest at a McDonald's, which was judged by Ronald McDonald himself.
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