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First, we have to preface this #FlashbackFriday by saying that Francis Ford Coppola is a filmmaking god. The man directed “The Godfather” (and obviously, “The Godfather: Part II”) and “Apocalypse Now” for crying out loud. If there was a Mount Rushmore for filmmaking, a case could be made for Coppola’s face to be etched into the side of a mountain.

That being said, even a god has to pay the bills every now and then.

Recently, we came across this clip of Francis Ford Coppola from his episode of James Lipton’s classic “Inside the Actor’s Studio” from 2001. In the discussion, Lipton asks Coppola to talk about what led the director back to the ‘Godfather’ franchise after the second one was such a classic film and the Corleone Family’s story had felt complete.

Was it a script he couldn’t pass up? Perhaps, it was the opportunity to finish the trilogy in a satisfactory way? Or maybe he loved working with Al Pacino so much he couldn’t pass it up? If you picked, “none of the above,” you win!

“We were broke,” admitted Coppola.

That’s right, Francis Ford Coppola, the Hollywood legend, filmed “The Godfather: Part III” for no other reason than money. The director continues to explain to Lipton why he felt a need to provide for his family and saw that returning to the franchise would allow him to cash a fairly big check.

Of course, as with most things, when money clouds your decision making nothing good can come from it. And while ‘Part III’ is far from a terrible film, it definitely didn’t reach the heights of the previous two. One of the larger criticisms revolves around Coppola hiring his daughter, Sofia, to have a fairly large role in the film. Let’s just say she’s a much better director than an actor.

You can listen to the full clip below: