Francis Ford Coppola Takes On Pacino, De Niro, Nicholson

Director Francis Ford Coppola wags his finger at some of the elder generation of actors in this month’s issue of GQ, calling out Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and Jack Nicholson for a lack of purpose and dedication. “I don’t feel that kind of passion to do a role and be great coming from those guys,” he says. Is he right? Let’s take a quick look at the three actors’ recent history and upcoming projects!

Jack Nicholson, 2002–2008
Paycheck roles: Anger Management, Something’s Gotta Give, The Bucket List
Actual Roles: About Schmidt, The Departed
Paycheck Ratio: 3 to 2

Al Pacino, 2002–2008
Paycheck roles: Simone, The Recruit, Two for the Money, Ocean’s 13, 88 Minutes, Righteous Kill
Actual roles: People I Know, Angels in America, The Merchant of Venice
Paycheck Ratio: 2 to 1

Robert De Niro, 2002–2008
Paycheck roles: Showtime, Analyze That, Godsend, Meet the Fockers, Shark Tale, Hide and Seek, Arthur and the Invisibles, Stardust, Righteous Kill
Actual roles: City by the Sea, The Bridge of San Luis Rey, The Good Shepherd, What Just Happened?
Paycheck Ratio: 9 to 4

And, by way of comparison…
Francis Ford Coppola, 2002–2008
Paycheck movies: None!
Actual movies: Youth Without Youth
Paycheck Ratio: Infinity!

Though we do sort of agree with Coppola, we don’t know that working on one movie in six years is exactly the solution we’d choose for these guys.

Coppola Chides 3 Oscar-Winning Actors [AP]