Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television

A seven-hour chronological edit of The Godfather and The Godfather Part II, expanded with over an hour of restored scenes to trace the Corleone family’s rise from Vito’s youth in Sicily to Michael’s reign in 1950s America.

The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television (1977) is an American crime drama miniseries created by Francis Ford Coppola for NBC. Adapting Mario Puzo's novel into a single continuous seven-hour edit, it recasts the two Godfather films in chronological order, with restored scenes added for the television run. Marlon Brando plays patriarch Don Vito Corleone, and Robert De Niro plays his younger self in the Sicilian and early New York flashbacks. Al Pacino stars as Michael Corleone, the reluctant son who slowly takes over the family business. Robert Duvall plays the family counselor Tom Hagen, and James Caan plays the volatile Sonny. The engine of the story is a family's struggle to protect its power, with rival gangs, betrayals, and police corruption pushing every decision toward violence. Set in 1950s America and in Sicily, it moves through the Corleone family's rise across four long episodes. Its tone is operatic and heavy, dense with dread, ambition, and grief. Fans of The Godfather, The Sopranos, and Boardwalk Empire will find resonance in its mafia saga and its portrait of a family consumed by its own empire.

Viewers broadly acclaim this seven-hour chronological recut of The Godfather films as a dense, emotionally powerful family epic with a commanding cast.

• The Godfather (1972)shared epic family saga structure, organized crime power struggles, and patriarchal succession themes
• The Sopranosshared sprawling multigenerational mafia family saga and patriarchal power themes
• Boardwalk Empireshared prestige crime epic tone and generational rise-and-fall of a crime family

Created by

Francis Ford Coppola

Release Date

1977-11-12

Episode runtime

423 min

Rating

9.5 / 10 (96)

What is Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television about?

A chronological seven-hour television edit of The Godfather films that traces the Corleone crime family from Vito's Sicilian youth to Michael's rule over organized crime.

What is Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television like to watch?

Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as dense.

Is Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television violent?

Somewhat. Ember rates the violence in Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television as moderate.

What did critics think of Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television?

Viewers broadly acclaim this seven-hour chronological recut of The Godfather films as a dense, emotionally powerful family epic with a commanding cast.

Which shows are like Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television?

Shows with a similar feel include The Godfather (1972), The Sopranos, and Boardwalk Empire.

How long is Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television?

Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television: 1 season, 4 episodes.

Is Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television still running?

No, Mario Puzo's The Godfather: The Complete Novel for Television has ended.