The Big Picture

• John Cazale had a short-lived career in Hollywood, but all five of his movies were acclaimed and nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars.
• Cazale's performances in films like The Godfather and Dog Day Afternoon showcased his versatility as an actor despite minimal screen credits.
• Cazale's collaborations with actors like Al Pacino and filmmakers like Francis Ford Coppola solidified his status as a legendary figure in Hollywood history.

A movie's actor can only ever have so much power over its critical and commercial success, and no actor can be blamed for a bad movie every now and again. It may come as a surprise to some, therefore, that there is one actor in Hollywood history with a string of movies, 100 percent of which are cinematic masterpieces. He starred in only five movies between 1972 and 1978, before his untimely death, but his short-lived career featured films that were exclusively Academy Award Best Picture Nominees. The actor not only became a renowned performer in his own right, but a celebrated contemporary of his collaborators like Robert De Niro and Al Pacino — and the first love of actress, Meryl Streep. His name is John Cazale, and he is an icon in his own right and a star we won't ever forget.

Cazale was born in Revere, Massachusetts in 1935. He attended Buxton High School in Williamstown and then enrolled in Ohio's Oberlin College before transferring back to Boston University, closer to home. There, he studied acting under Peter Kass before appearing in Hotel Paradiso and Our House at the Charles Playhouse in Boston in 1959. In 1966, Cazale was cast opposite his fellow Standard Oil employee Al Pacino in an Off-Broadway production of The Indian Wants the Bronx. Both were awarded Obie Awards and would continue their friendship and collaboration for years to come. Cazale won again for Line and made a guest appearance on ABC's N.Y.P.D. in 1968. But Cazale is perhaps best known for his feature film debut in 1972, in a little film called The Godfather.

'The Godfather' (1972)

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

In 1969, John Cazale joined the Long Wharf Theatre Company in Connecticut, a company he performed with for three seasons. In 1971, he reprised his Obie-winning role in Line, this time opposite a young Richard Dreyfuss. This coincided with The Godfather's producer Fred Roos visiting New York to try to cast the movie. Watching Cazale's performance in Line, Roos thought Cazale to be perfect for the role of Fredo Corleone. Fredo is the middle son of the titular Vito Corleone (played by Cazale's hero, Marlon Brando) and the older brother of Vito's successor, Michael (played by Cazale's friend Al Pacino). The film was nominated for 10 Academy Awards and won three, including the Oscar for Best Picture. It remains among the highest-rated films of all time to this day.

The Godfather is available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.

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'The Conversation' (1974)

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

Because of how bright he shined in The Godfather, providing the smaller role of Fredo with complexity and layers, the film's director Francis Ford Coppola wrote a part specifically for John Cazale in his next movie, The Conversation. This movie marks a shift in 1970s American movies, relating to private surveillance in a post-Watergate world in which Richard Nixon's shadow loomed large. It stars Gene Hackman in the lead with Cazale as his reliable friend and collaborator, Stan. This very different side of Cazale proved to audiences and filmmakers just how versatile the actor was despite his minimal screen credits.

The film also stars a young Harrison Ford as the charming antagonist, three years before Star Wars and five years before appearing in Coppola's Apocalypse Now. The Conversation won the Palm d'Or at the 1974 Cannes Film Festival and was nominated for three Academy Awards, including Best Picture.

The Conversation is available to stream on Netflix in the U.S.

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'The Godfather Part II' (1974)

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola

The sequel to Coppola's adaptation of Mario Puzo's novel sees Al Pacino's Michael Corleone in a descent towards brutality. The dual-narrative film sees the origins of Vito's organization (played this time by the younger Robert De Niro) intercut with Michael's loss of perspective, prioritizing the business over his family; the opposite of his father's ideals. As such, The Godfather Part II utilizes Fredo as a representation of family and one of the last remaining Corleones in Michael's life.

Cazale is given a much more prominent role in the second installment, and is even the focus of many of the franchise's most memorable quotes and moments. The three-hour and 20-minute epic was nominated for 11 Academy Awards, winning six, including Best Picture, and is still used as a prime example when discussing sequels that rival the original. With three juggernauts under his belt at this stage, Cazale seemed to be Hollywood's secret ingredient.

The Godfather: Part II is available to stream on Paramount+ in the U.S.

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'Dog Day Afternoon' (1974)

Directed by Sidney Lumet

On August 22, 1972, John Wojtowicz and Salvatore Naturile entered a Brooklyn Bank carrying shotguns. Having just watched The Godfather for some inspiration, they slipped a teller a note that read, "This is an offer you can't refuse." This hostage crisis lasted hours, taking the nation by storm, and a couple of years later, director Sidney Lumet decided to make Dog Day Afternoon based on these events. The Godfather's own Al Pacino was cast in the role of Sonny Wortzik (inspired by Wojtowicz), whose attempts to rob the bank were in service of affording his spouse's gender-reassignment surgery. Despite Naturile's youth, Pacino pushed for 39-year-old Cazale to play Sal, a role which finally earned the actor some personal recognition in the form of a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actor. The film made a huge impact both critically and commercially. Now, four-for-four, Cazale's new movie was yet again nominated for Best Picture at the Academy Awards.

Dog Day Afternoon features a scene in which a gun-wielding Cazale softly explains to his hostage that she shouldn't smoke because of the risks of cancer. It's chilling. "I learned more about acting from John than anybody," Al Pacino stated. "All I wanted to do was work with John for the rest of my life. He was my acting partner." The two continued to collaborate onstage when Cazale returned to his roots at the Charles Playhouse in Boston. They also performed together at Joe Papp's Public Theater in New York City, which was followed by Cazale being cast in Shakespeare's Measure for Measure opposite a woman he described to Pacino as "the greatest actress in the history of the world." Her name was Meryl Streep. The two soon moved in together, but their relationship wouldn't last long as, in 1977, Cazale's own smoking habits had ironically led to a lung cancer diagnosis.

Dog Day Afternoon is available to rent on Amazon Prime Video in the U.S.

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'The Deer Hunter' (1978)

Directed by Michael Cimino

The Deer Hunter stars Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken, and John Cazale as friends from a steel mill town in Pennsylvania, whose experiences of the Vietnam War impact each of them in very different ways. This haunting epic was directed by Michael Cimino, who scheduled the production to film Cazale's scenes first, in light of his diagnosis. De Niro also paid for Cazale's insurance himself to ensure the actors could work together before Cazale's death. Meryl Streep accepted the role of Linda in order to remain close to Cazale during the shoot, and although he completed his part in the production, Cazale did not survive long enough to see the film released. The film earned nine Academy Award nominations, winning five Oscars, including Best Picture, and making the late great John Cazale an undefeated legend of the silver screen.

The Godfather, The Conversation, The Godfather Part II, Dog Day Afternoon, and The Deer Hunter — these films perfectly curate not only one man's career but an entire movement in Hollywood history. Cazale wasn't just in these movies either. He played a vital role in all of them. His death broke the hearts of many of his friends and contemporaries, including Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and, of course, his then-girlfriend and co-star, 28-year-old Meryl Streep. John Cazale's life and performances remain preserved on celluloid, however, with three of his movies winning Best Picture at the Oscars and all five remaining in the proverbial cinematic hall of fame. For an actor with only five movies under his belt, Cazale's success as a performer cannot be understated.

The Deer Hunter is available to rent on Amazon Prime Video in the U.S.

Rent on Prime Video