The Controversial Decision To Kill Off Fredo
If you think that it still seems unimaginable to be able to like a character, even a protagonist, who orchestrates the death of his brother, you would share that opinion with Mario Puzo. Puzo was the author of the Godfather book series and a close collaborator with Francis Ford Coppola on the films. According to The Godfather’s 50th Anniversary introduction, written by Coppola, “Mario was dubious about the idea that it was Fredo who kidnapped Michael; he didn’t think it was plausible. But he was absolutely against Michael ordering his own brother to be killed. ” Coppola later explained that while Puzo added his thoughts for what the novel’s characters may do, Coppola’s input was contingency upon what a film director would do.
It’s important to note that the novel, The Godfather, initially released in 1969, did not feature Fredo dying. With both Godfather films being released by 1974 and Puzo’s sequel The Sicilian not released until 1984, Fredo’s death was not written in Puzo’s novels. Therefore, Fredo’s death was purely an idea of Coppola’s.
With the family being at the film’s center, Coppola and Puzo had to devise a compromise. They settled on Fredo’s death occurring after Fredo and Michael’s mother, Carmela, passed away. With Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) having already passed, their parents were no longer a concern. The decision turned out to be the right one as it served as the film’s emotional climax. Additionally, Fredo’s death will come to serve as a catalyst to the dissolution of Michael’s marriage to his wife, Kay (Diane Keaton), as well as the strained relationship between Michael and his son, Anthony (Franc D’Ambrosio), who had grown close to his uncle as a child. Of course, none of this fully culminates until The Godfather Part III, released in 1990.
