James Gandolfini as Trupo is the standout what-if, with Ray Liotta, Brad Pitt, and Eddie Murphy also mentioned
In the discussion (3)
- James Gandolfini reportedly declined Trupo and is judged an excellent hypothetical choice
- Ray Liotta is mentioned as an earlier Richie possibility
- Brad Pitt and Eddie Murphy are mentioned as having had some connection to development
Ray Liotta and Eva Mendes are proposed replacements
In the discussion (3)
- Ray Liotta is proposed for Dominic Cattano
- Ray Liotta as Trupo or Richie is preferred over casting him as the mob boss
- Eva Mendes is proposed as Frank’s wife
Research covers budget penalties, gifts, real-world family connections, locations, and a Godfather Part III idea
In the discussion (6)
- Brian Grazer and Ridley Scott reportedly returned three million dollars after overrunning the budget
- The BET series American Gangster is noted as predating the movie
- Russell Crowe reportedly gave RZA a mint 1961 Gretsch guitar and they remained friends
- Frank Lucas’s real driver is identified as Sean Combs’s father, who was killed when Combs was two
- The production used parts of upper Manhattan that could still pass for 1970s New York
- Francis Ford Coppola reportedly considered a Frank Lucas-like character for The Godfather Part III
Frank’s market position, lack of consequences, unclear chronology, family awareness, and fabricated epilogue are challenged
In the discussion (8)
- Frank’s superior direct supply should have let him eliminate Harlem competition
- Territory and distribution relationships are offered as constraints on expansion
- Frank faces no repercussions for shooting Tango in public
- Harlem loyalty is offered as an explanation for the silence
- Woody Allen and Diane Keaton are shown together before their real relationship and before Keaton was well known
- The chronology is too unclear about whether scenes are weeks or years apart
- Frank’s mother knowing he sells drugs is criticized as disconnected from the movie’s reality
- The closing-title claims are mocked for extending the film’s fabrications
Questions cover absent actors, Denzel’s persona, ideal length, Trupo, Frank’s wife, and Stevie’s Yankees path
In the discussion (8)
- How Mark Ruffalo missed the large ensemble is asked
- Whether this performance created Jay Pharoah’s Denzel Washington impression is asked
- The maximum acceptable length is debated; one participant would watch a six-hour event
- More Vietnam, Jake, Stevie, and Frank-fall material is requested
- Trupo’s home life and golf club are questioned
- Whether Frank’s wife set him up by insisting on the fur coat is debated
- The unexplained fake beard is raised as evidence of missing connective material
- Whether Stevie could plausibly go from the street to the Yankees in 1974 is questioned
The French Connection is preferred, while Blow is added late
In the discussion (4)
- The French Connection is selected as the best pairing and described as a narrative precursor
- Virtuosity is proposed for an earlier Crow-Washington pairing
- Ricochet prompts a tangent but is not selected
- Blow is added as another preferred pairing
Casting What-Ifs