By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer
NEW YORK (AP) — Decades after the last “Godfather” movie and more than 10 years since the last “Godfather” novel, the story of the Corleone crime family has a new chapter, presented for the first time from a woman’s point of view.
Random House told The Associated Press that it had acquired a “Godfather” novel authorized by the estate of Mario Puzo and written by bestselling author Adriana Trigiani. “Connie” is scheduled for a fall 2027 release and will center on the Corleone family member played by Talia Shire, sister of director Francis Ford Coppola, in the three “Godfather” films.
“Connie” is the third “Godfather” book approved by the estate and the first written by a woman.
“‘Connie’ is a novel about how a woman works to forge her own way in a world that’s already decided who she is, what she’s about, and how she should be treated,” Trigiani said in a statement Wednesday. “People underestimated Don Vito Corleone and Michael Corleone at their peril. The same will be true for Connie Corleone.”
Paramount Pictures, which produced the “Godfather” movies,” holds the film rights. Additional details were not immediately available.
Puzo, whose blockbuster 1969 novel “The Godfather,” provided the basis and title for the first film, died in 1999 and his estate has since battled with Paramount over who controls rights to the Corleone characters. In 2012, the movie studio sued to block publication of Ed Falco’s “The Family Corleone.” After the estate countersued, the two sides agreed to a settlement that allowed the estate to continue initiating book projects and awarded film rights to Paramount.
The final release of the original “Godfather” trilogy, “The Godfather Part III,” came out in 1990. The films all starred Al Pacino as Michael Corleone, Connie’s brother, with other actors appearing in at least one movie including Marlon Brando, Robert De Niro, Robert Duvall and Diane Keaton. The “Godfather” saga has earned more than $400 million worldwide and won nine Academy Awards, two of them to Puzo in the 1970s for best adapted screenplay.
Trigiani, a million-selling author who wrote of her own Italian roots in the novel “The Shoemaker’s Wife,” is also known for such favorites as “Lucia, Lucia” and “The Queen of the Big Time.” According to Random House, the Puzo estate “sought out” Trigiani after she published a Substack essay lamenting how little was known about the Corleone women.
“We had been looking for someone to retell the story from a new perspective,” Anthony Puzo, the author’s son and executor, said in a statement. “Adriana was knocked out when I told her that the character of Vito Corleone (played in the films by Brando and De Niro) was actually based on my grandmother. We talked about how the women ran both of our families, but behind the scenes. Adriana’s vision for Connie’s life blew us all away. I’m very pleased and excited to have her on board.”