Career: Brando started making a name for himself on Broadway in the late 1940s, achieving stardom as Stanley Kowalski in Tennessee Williams's 1947 play A Streetcar Named Desire. Warner Brothers came knocking and asked him to do a screen test. His first film role was as a bitter paraplegic veteran in The Men in 1950 and his big break came when he brought Stanley Kowalski to the big screen in A Streetcar Named Desire. This role quickly established Brando as a Hollywood sex symbol. He went on to star in Viva Zapata! (1952), Julius Caesar (1952), On the Waterfront (1954) and The Wild One (1953). Other highlights in a highly distinguished career include The Godfather (1972), Last Tango in Paris (1972), Superman (1978) and Apocalypse Now (1979). Despite announcing his retirement from acting in 1980, he continued to act and appeared in A Dry White Season (1989), The Freshman (1990) and The Score (2001). He died on July 1, 2004 at the age of 80.

Career: Pacino made his film debut in 1969's Me, Natalie, but it was his performance as a junkie in The Panic in Needle Park two years later that prompted director Francis Ford Coppola to cast him as Michael Corleone in The Godfather. The film was a huge hit and earned Pacino his first Oscar nomination. He followed it up with more hits including Serpico (1973), Dog Day Afternoon (1975) and Scarface (1983), but as his movie career appeared to be on the wane during the 1980s, he took a break to return to the theatre. He returned to the screen in 1989 with Sea of Love and, after seven previous nominations, went on to win an Oscar for Scent of a Woman (1992). He continues to combine movies, TV, theatre and directing work - recent projects include Danny Collins (2015) and Misconduct (2016).

Career: Caan began appearing in off-Broadway plays before making his Broadway debut in Blood, Sweat and Stanley Poole in 1961. He appeared in TV series such as The Untouchables, Wide Country, Dr Kildare, and Ben Casey, before landing his first film role in 1964 thriller Lady in a Cage. A year later, he landed his first starring role in Red Line 7000. More films followed in the 1960s, including El Dorado (1966), Countdown (1968), and The Rain People (1969). During the 1970s, he won acclaim in TV movie Brian's Song, and on the big screen in The Godfather (1972), The Godfather Part II (1974), Rollerball (1975), Funny Lady (1975), A Bridge Too Far (1977), and Violent Streets (1981). After a break from acting, he returned in 1987 in Francis Ford Coppola's Gardens of Stone. He went on to star in Alien Nation (1988), Dick Tracy (1990), Misery (1990), Honeymoon in Vegas (1992), Eraser (1996), Mickey Blue Eyes (1999), and Elf (2003). In 2003, he returned to TV in Las Vegas, a role he played for five seasons.

Career: Keaton made ends meet performing at a nightclub before landing a role on Broadway in Hair, although she refused to take part in the musical's notorious nude scene. The role that changed her career was a part in Woody Allen's stage version of Play It Again, Sam. She went on to star in several of the director's films, including the big-screen adaptation of the play, as well as Sleeper, Love and Death, Manhattan and Annie Hall. She won an Oscar for the latter, and Allen has claimed she was his muse for a period. Keaton has also starred in The Godfather trilogy, Reds, The First Wives Club, Something's Gotta Give and Morning Glory, as well as moving into directing and producing.

Career: Duvall's first professional work came on stage. His TV debut was in a 1959 episode of Armstrong Circle Theatre, while his first film was 1962's To Kill a Mockingbird. Other early movies were The Chase, Bullitt, True Grit and MASH. In 1972, he received his first Oscar nomination for The Godfather. Nominations since have been for Apocalypse Now, The Great Santini, The Apostle (which he also wrote and directed) and A Civil Action. He won the Best Actor award for Tender Mercies in 1983. Other films include The Godfather: Part II, Sling Blade, Open Range, Secondhand Lions, Thank You for Smoking, Crazy Heart and Get Low.