After John Cazale made his film acting debut in The Godfather, it kicked off an incredible hot streak in which he starred in five of the greatest movies of all time. Cazale started out as a theater actor in New York, treading the boards in everything from regional theater to off-Broadway productions before appearing in Broadway shows alongside the likes of Al Pacino and Meryl Streep. Cazale was a selfless performer who embodied the tenet that “acting is reacting,” playing off his co-stars and highlighting the strengths of their performances, which is likely why he never landed an Oscar nomination.

In 1962, Cazale made his on-screen debut with the role of a beatnik in Marvin Starkman’s short film The American Way, and in 1968, he played his only television role as a guest star in N.Y.P.D. season 2, episode 8, “The Peep Freak.” Cazale made his movie debut when Francis Ford Coppola cast him in The Godfather, and he promptly became one of Hollywood’s favorite character actors. He followed up The Godfather with four more ‘70s classics, garnering a flawless track record and arguably the most impressive, spotless filmography in cinema history, before his career was tragically cut short.

John Cazale's Role In The Godfather Explained

Cazale played the dim-witted Fredo Corleone in The Godfather and its first sequel

Coppola assembled one of the greatest ensemble casts in film history for his adaptation of Mario Puzo’s The Godfather. He cast screen legend Marlon Brando to play Vito, the powerful patriarch of the Corleone crime family, and rounded out the rest of the cast with up-and-coming actors who would soon be screen legends in their own right. He cast rising star Al Pacino as Vito’s youngest son, Michael, who gets dragged into the family business; James Caan as Vito’s hot-headed eldest son, Sonny; Diane Keaton as Michael’s girlfriend, Kay; and Robert Duvall as Vito’s lawyer, Tom Hagen.

For the role of Fredo, Vito’s middle son, who means well but is too dim-witted and cowardly to run the business, Coppola cast Cazale in his film debut. Making the leap from the stage to the screen isn’t always an easy transition for an actor – theater and film require two totally different kinds of acting – but Cazale was a natural. He adapted to the camera quickly and held his own in scenes opposite an acting giant like Brando. Fredo is the laughingstock of the Corleone family, but Cazale played him with enough earnestness and authenticity to earn the audience’s sympathies.

John Cazale's 1970s Acting Streak From The Godfather To The Deer Hunter Was Amazing

Cazale appeared in five of the greatest movies ever made back-to-back

Cazale’s role in The Godfather started an impeccable streak that saw him star in five of the greatest movies ever made back-to-back: The Godfather, The Conversation, The Godfather Part II, Dog Day Afternoon, and The Deer Hunter, which was released posthumously. This was an absurdly great run; all five of Cazale’s movies were nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture. No other actor can boast a filmography in which they’ve only appeared in Best Picture-nominated movies. And not only that, Cazale gives a fantastic performance in every single one of those films, leaving a lasting impression.

After appearing in The Godfather, Coppola cast Cazale in his next film, the paranoid post-Watergate thriller The Conversation, in 1974. Cazale plays Stan Ross, an associate of Gene Hackman’s surveillance expert Harry Caul, who hears something he wasn’t supposed to and begins to suspect he’s the target of a government conspiracy. After that, Cazale reunited with Coppola again to reprise his role as Fredo in The Godfather Part II. Fredo gets a bigger role in the sequel, betraying his brother Michael, and Cazale’s palpable relationship with Pacino, which shined through on-screen, made this betrayal all the more heartbreaking.

In 1975, Cazale and Pacino starred in Sidney Lumet’s tense crime dramedy Dog Day Afternoon, based on the true story of a first-time crook who held up a bank with his friend to pay for his lover’s gender confirmation surgery. The movie is a boiling pot of tension, and Cazale and Pacino’s performances keep their characters sympathetic as the police close in and the hostage situation drags out. Their unparalleled on-screen chemistry goes a long way towards selling the characters’ ride-or-die friendship, too.

In 1978, Cazale made his final film appearance as a draft dodger in Michael Cimino’s Vietnam War epic The Deer Hunter. While Robert De Niro’s Mike, Christopher Walken’s Nick, and John Savage’s Steven all leave their quaint town to fight on the deadly battlefields of Vietnam, Cazale’s Stosh stays behind to be with his wife and child, much to his friends’ chagrin. When Mike returns from Vietnam, he’s disgusted by Stosh’s cavalier attitude towards gun violence, because he wouldn’t be so cavalier if he’d gone to war and been forced to play Russian roulette.

What Happened To John Cazale: His Death & Acting Legacy

Cazale ed away from lung cancer on March 13, 1978

In 1977, Cazale was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer, but decided to finish filming his role in The Deer Hunter. According to John Parker’s book Robert De Niro: Portrait of a Legend, the studio wanted to fire Cazale due to his illness, but Streep, with whom he was in a relationship, and Cimino both threatened to walk if Cazale was fired. Since Cazale was uninsurable, De Niro went into his own pocket to pay for Cazale’s insurance, because he wanted him in the movie. Cazale ed away shortly after filming wrapped and he never saw the completed movie.

Cazale died on March 13, 1978, but his legacy has lived on ever since. In 2009, Cazale was the subject of an HBO documentary called I Knew It Was You: Rediscovering John Cazale. The doc was directed by Richard Shepard and premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Streep, Pacino, De Niro, Hackman, Coppola, and Lumet all gave interviews for the documentary, which highlighted what a unique talent Cazale was.

Despite his deep respect for Cazale, Cimino refused to be a part of the documentary.

What's John Cazale's Best Movie Role?

Fredo is arguably his most iconic role

Cazale’s movie roles were all memorable, but which one was the best? In The Conversation and The Deer Hunter, Cazale plays ing roles that complement the lead performances of Hackman and De Niro, respectively. Cazale gives a great turn in Dog Day Afternoon, but he’s slightly overshadowed by a manic, unpredictable Pacino. Arguably Cazale’s most iconic role is Fredo from The Godfather saga. Fredo is his most quotable character, his most lovable character, and his most well-known character in the pop culture landscape.