The Corleone family has 22 , headed by the patriarch, Vito Corleone, who is often called "The Don," meaning "the boss." Vito is a powerful member of the mafia, and while some of his family want to be involved in the business, others do not. The Godfather is one of the greatest movies of all time, and this is partly due to the standout performances of its actors.

movies that defined Al Pacino's career, and Pacino was nominated twice for an Academy Award. While Pacino didn't win, the Godfather trilogy would win nine Academy Awards, and the original movie still has a 98% positive audience rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The Corleone family remains one of cinema's most iconic, with its story being told across three movies.

From Vito to Vincent, the history of the Don position in the Corleone family is also the history of Michael's rise and fall. While Pacino's character was not the first in the line of succession, he ended up becoming the true successor to his father. However, Michael Corleone was neither the first nor the final character to become the family Don after Vito Corleone's death.

6 Vito Corleone

Played By Marlon Brando

Vito Corleone is called "The Godfather" because the term was used in mafia circles. This is a translation of the "padrino." Vito is the first Corleone family Don that viewers see in The Godfather, when, according to Sicilian tradition, he grants favors at his daughter's wedding. Vito Corleone values his family above all else and while he is fiercely loyal to them, he is also ruthless and violent.

Vito thinks nothing of putting hits on people in his way and finding unusual and gory ways of persuading people to do what he wants. This is shown early during The Godfather's infamous "horse head" scene. However, while he is intelligent and an excellent strategist, Vito is set in his ways and reluctant to change to fit in with more modern criminal enterprises. His decision to trust his family rather than new partners, even while his sons are shown to be unreliable, leads to his downfall.

Vito's health is failing, and he is aware that he must choose one of his children to become the new Don. Choosing a successor who can be as caring and merciless as Vito is a difficult decision. That said, the decision is made for him when he is shot and finds himself clinging to life in the hospital. While Vito recovers, the Corleone family does not until Michael takes over. Vito may have made mistakes, but his fate is surprisingly peaceful for a man with such a violent history, as he dies of a heart attack in his garden.

5 Sonny Corleone

Played By James Caan

Sonny is Vito's eldest son and, arguably, the first choice for his successor based on birth order. That said, Sonny was one of the worst possible candidates for the new Corleone family Don. Sonny was impulsive and hot-headed, making a significant mistake during the drug trade meeting with Sollozzo, by disagreeing with Vito in front of Sollozzo.

This gives Sollozzo the impression that if Vito is assassinated, Sonny will take over and bring the Corleone family into the drug trade. After Vito is shot, Sonny becomes the acting Don, nearly ruining the Corleones. Sonny has some of the best quotes in The Godfather, and James Caan shows him as more than a caricature, which could easily have happened.

While Sonny is violent, he is unable to harm women or people that he feels are defenseless. While this makes Sonny more irable than many other characters in the Godfather movies, it also leads to his downfall. Sonny Corleone is easily manipulated, and when Carlo beats Connie, provoking her into calling for help, Sonny rushes to her aid. Sonny's assassination ends his stint as the Corleone family's Don.

4 Michael Corleone

Played By Al Pacino

While the Godfather trilogy begins with Vito Corleone, it is really about the rise and fall of Michael Corleone, who is Vito's favorite son. Michael was on a straighter path, with no ties to the mafia. Vito had hoped that Michael would go into politics, but as Michael shares Vito's loyalty to his family, he stays behind when Vito is shot. Though Sonny is the acting Don, viewers can see that Michael is the better choice as he does his best to prevent an all-out war between the families by stopping Sonny from acting rashly.

Vito had hoped that Michael would go into politics, but as Michael shares Vito's loyalty to his family, he stays behind when Vito is shot.

Michael's loyalty to his family brings him fully into the mafia business, where he becomes more formidable than any of the Corleone Dons. After Sonny is assassinated, it is Michael who begins to repair the relationships in the Corleone family, and while he appears to be a kinder and more peaceful alternative than Sonny, this is not quite the case. Michael is more patient than Sonny, which allows him to play the long game, setting up a revenge that went down in cinema history.

The Godfather's baptism scene is one of the most famous movie scenes ever, and it has been replicated and tributed many times. At the end of The Godfather, Michael has all the Corleone family enemies killed, changing the criminal underworld in New York in one single day. Michael is the most iconic of all the Corleone Dons, and Al Pacino plays him in all three movies. The saga depicts his ongoing corruption. During Michael's reign, other Corleone family become stand-in Dons, before Michael relinquishes the title, dying alone and regretful.

3 Tom Hagen

Played By Robert Duvall

Tom Hagen was Vito Corleone's adopted son and advisor, and Vito truly listened to Tom throughout The Godfather. Tom is often the voice of reason in the Corleone family and has a legitimate job as a lawyer. Still, when the time came for Vito to be replaced as the Corleone family Don, it was Michael who succeeded him.

While Michael made his mark on the criminal underworld, he did not behave as Vito would have. If the Corleone family wanted a peaceful alliance, Tom should have been The Godfather instead of Michael Corleone. Tom cannot become a full mafia member as he is not Italian, but he briefly becomes the Corleone family Don in The Godfather Part II.

When Michael survives an assassination attempt, he realizes that there is nobody in his inner circle that he can trust, and leaves to find out who tried to have him killed. During this time, Michael names Tom Hagen the acting Don for the Corleone family. This is a mark of deep trust, and Tom remains the Don until Michael returns, then resumes his position as a lawyer.

2 Connie Corleone

Played By Talia Shire

One of the harsh realities of rewatching The Godfather is how small a role the female characters play. Connie Corleone is one of the more overlooked characters in the Godfather movies, and yet she plays a key role. Connie is Vito Corleone's only daughter and she is never considered as his successor.

Connie spends most of The Godfather trapped in an abusive marriage, then spends The Godfather Part II struggling with her romantic life and her strained relationship with Michael. However, Connie comes into her own in The Godfather Part III. The Godfather Part III is not as well-regarded as the first two, although many consider it underrated. The third movie in the Godfather trilogy allows Connie to take a more central role, and she proves herself to be a competent leader.

When Michael suffers a diabetic stroke, Connie steps in to make decisions, which include the hit on Joey Zasa. Even Michael comes to respect her as a leader, making her subject only to his authority while he recovers, which is a significant move for a character (and movie) that had pushed women to the sidelines for too long.

1 Vincent Mancini

Played By Andy Garcia

Vincent Mancini is Sonny Corleone's illegitimate son, born from an affair he had with his wife's bridesmaid, Lucy Mancini. This was a significant change from The Godfather book, where Lucy and Sonny do not have a child at all. Andy Garcia was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Vincent, who is a mixture of all the previous Corleone family Dons' temperaments.

Vincent had the potential to be as much of a liability as his father, but Michael's guidance changed him into a powerful and more measured person.

After Vincent kills two hitmen hired by Joey Zasa, Michael becomes his mentor, noticing that he has inherited his father's impulsivity. Vincent had the potential to be as much of a liability as his father, but Michael's guidance changed him into a powerful and more measured person.

Throughout The Godfather Part III, Vincent shows his respect for Michael by asking his permission for actions like retaliation, proving that he has the potential to be different from Sonny. By the end of The Godfather Part III, Michael has formally named Vincent as his successor, naming him Don Vincent Corleone.