Al Pacino, Marlon Brando, James Caan, John Cazale
In the years since The Godfather‘s release, critics have marveled at the cast that Francis Ford Coppola put together for the film. At the time, the Academy agreed, honoring each of the principal male players with Oscar nods. Al Pacino as Michael, Robert Duvall as Tom Hagen and James Caan as Sonny were all nominated for Best Supporting Actor. Marlon Brando won the Academy Award for Best Actor, but he turned down the Oscar, instead sending a Native-American activist in traditional Apache dress to state his reason: an objection to the depiction of Native Americans in Hollywood films. It was a case of history repeating itself. The last actor who had won an Oscar with a Coppola-penned script was Patton‘s George C. Scott, who became the first actor to turn down the award.