The Godfather Part IV Needs An Author

Posted Friday, October 25, 2002 at 11:10 AM Central

by Tim Briscoe

The search is on for a writer to replace late author Mario Puzo in drafting another The Godfather installment. With the Puzo family's approval, publisher Random House recently sent announcements to literary agents seeking an author for the project.

Jonathan Karp, Random House's vice president and executive editor described the brand of writer they're looking for, "We're looking for a writer who's basically at the same place as Mario was in his career... We're looking for the same kind of narrative energy, dark irony and originality of voice."

Once an author is found the the tome is written, the logical next step is a film adaptation. Paramount will reportedly first in line to snag the rights since they released the first three films and own the rights to the characters.

Shortly before Mario Puzo's death in 1999, The Godfather Part IV was rumored to be in the works. Francis Ford Coppola, director of the previous films, did not confirm his involvement as helmer of the project but Andy Garcia and Leonardo DiCaprio were both reportedly on board for the then-to-be-written-by Puzo script.

The Godfather franchise is arguably film's greatest despite a dismal The Godfather Part III in 1990. A fourth film would most likely strike gold at the box office.

To insure success, perhaps Paramount should widen the project by taking a cue from New Line. The studio's combination of two great horror characters for next year's Freddy Vs. Jason movie is sure to have audiences shrieking. 'The Corleones Vs. The Sopranos' is an offer no one can refuse.