Francis Ford Coppola director's worst work yet." In 1990, he released the third and final chapter of "The Godfather" series: "The Godfather Part III". While not as critically acclaimed as the first two films, it was still a box office success, earning $136 million against a budget of $54 million. Some reviewers criticized the casting of Coppola's daughter Sofia, who had stepped into the leading role of Mary Corleone which had been abandoned by Winona Ryder just as filming began. Despite this, "The Godfather Part III" went on to gather 7 Academy Award nominations, including Best Director and Best Picture. The film failed
Francis Ford Coppola with Mario Puzo), Best Picture, and his first nomination for Best Director. He followed with "The Godfather Part II" in 1974, which became the first sequel to win the Academy Award for Best Picture. Highly regarded by critics, it brought him three more Academy Awards: Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Director and Best Picture, and made him the second director, after Billy Wilder, to be honored three times for the same film. "The Conversation", which he directed, produced and wrote, was released that same year, winning the Palme d'Or at the 1974 Cannes Film Festival. He next directed 1979's "Apocalypse Now".