Billy Zane Is an Uncanny Marlon Brando Lookalike in First Waltzing With Brando Image

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Billy Zane

A biopic about legendary The Godfather actor, Marlon Brando produced by and starring Titanic star Billy Zane is coming to our screens soon. Titled Waltzing With Brando, the feature is set to premiere next month at Italy's Torino Film Festival, and ahead of its world premiere, a first look still from the feature has been released. The image shows Zane as Brando recreating an unforgettable image of Don Vito Corleone, Brando's memorable character from the 1972 crime classic. At first glance, it's incredibly impossible to tell Brando isn't the one in the image, as the Titanic villain shares an uncanny resemblance with the late cinema legend.

Written and directed by Bill Fishman, Waltzing With Brando is an adaptation of Bernard Judge’s 2011 book of the same name. Judge was an architect who encountered Brando during a period that coincided with the actor's filming for The Godfather and Last Tango in Paris. Brando ultimately became an inspiration to Judge, convincing the young architect to build him what would be the world's first ecological retreat on the Tahitian island of Tetiaroa. For the rest of his career, Judge became renowned for his environmentally-conscious designs and innovations. Their work relationship blossomed into friendship with both even living together at some point.

What To Expect From 'Waltzing With Brando'

Don Vito Corleone places his hand on his heart for a somber vow in The Godfather.

Waltzing With Brando isn't your typical biopic chronicling a person's full life story but will instead attempt to depict a distinct period in Marlon's life. "The tone of the movie is.... It’s not your average biopic, it's not a cradle-to-grave story," Zane previously told Entertainment Weekly in an interview. "It's a five-year period, and a unique friendship between his architect and him, trying to figure out sustainable design in the late sixties and early seventies in Tahiti. It’s curiously a really great lens on a figure, as opposed to trying to tell a whole lifetime."

In addition to The Godfather and Last Tango in Paris, the biopic will also cover Brando's time as Kal-El’s Kryptonian dad in Superman (1978). So we can expect to see Zane slip into a suit in a recreation of another memorable Marlon Brando role as he further shared: “Literally, we just added a little outtake as Jor-El — of him doing outtakes during the filming of [Superman]. We found that [footage] online and thought it was the funniest thing.” It all seems as though Waltzing With Brando will be a nostalgic experience for lovers of Marlon Brando films as well as those who shared the screen with him. We should also expect an incredible performance from Zane with the festival's director Giulio Base telling Variety of his performance; “You won’t believe it: he is possessed by Marlon Brando,”

A theatrical release date is yet to be announced but Waltzing with Brando will show on the closing night at the Torino Film Festival which is scheduled to run from Nov. 22 to 30 in Turin, Italy. A trailer is expected to arrive soon, so stay tuned to Collider for more.

The Godfather

Don Vito Corleone, head of a mafia family, decides to hand over his empire to his youngest son, Michael. However, his decision unintentionally puts the lives of his loved ones in grave danger.

Release Date March 14, 1972

Director Francis Ford Coppola

Runtime 175 minutes

Main Genre Crime

Writers Mario Puzo , Francis Ford Coppola

Studio Paramount Pictures

Tagline An offer you can't refuse.

Production Company Paramount Pictures, Alfran Productions

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