# Pacino and DeNiro never shared a screen? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 12, 2003, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196 "2003-01-12T22:11:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/1 "2003-01-12T22:11:24Z")
I heard a movie host (TNT or TBS, one of those) claim this last week. They’ve been in the same movie… _The Godfather_ (Parts 2 and 3), and _Heat_ are all I can think of at the moment. In _Heat_ they even had a conversation at a diner, but according to this guy the scene was shot all single headshots, as they faced each other across a table. Of course he said this after the scene had run, so I didn’t notice. And he went on to say they have yet to share the screen. Any other movies they’ve both been in? Any scenes where they both appear in the same shot? ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/2 "2003-01-12T22:39:06Z")
I seem to recall that Heat was the first time they were in a scene together, they made a big deal of it at the time. But at no time in that movie do they share the screen, if you don’t count the back of one’s head in an OTS shot of the other. Technically, they could have never been on set together and they still could have filmed it that way. But I also recall Michael Mann saying that it was a very intense scene to shoot, that they nailed it pretty much out of the box. ---
**Author:** ![typhoon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ed8c4c/32.png) [@typhoon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/typhoon)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/3 "2003-01-12T22:39:12Z")
So the diner scene switches between their two headshots even in the theatrical widescreen version? ---
**Author:** ![MilTan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@MilTan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MilTan)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 10:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/4 "2003-01-12T22:40:25Z")
Woo! I just picked up the _Heat_ DVD yesterday! Time to scrub through it. It’s true that the scene was shot with only head shots - but they were all over the shoulder shots, and you can see the back of the other actors head each time. I don’t know if this counts as “sharing the screen.” Right before the diner scene, Pacino pulls De Niro over and invites him to coffee. There are a few parts of that scene when both of their faces are visible (De Niro in profile), although De Niro’s face is not in focus. Finally, at the end of the movie (spoiler warning!), when Pacino walks up to De Niro after shooting him, there is an overhead shot where we see De Niro sprawled on the ground as Pacino approaches, both in the frame. And finally, the very last shot of the movie shows the two men clasping hands. This time, Pacino’s back is to the camera, so again, we don’t get to see both of their faces, in focus, at the same time. However, I think, overall, there was enough shared screen time in _Heat_ to put to rest the idea that they never shared the screen. ---
**Author:** ![MilTan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@MilTan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MilTan)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/5 "2003-01-12T22:43:33Z")
_sigh_ That’s what I get for spending so long watching the scenes (the diner scene is simply amazing). But I think the other two scenes I pointed out from the same movie give my previous post at least a little bit of usefulness. **typhoon** : Yes, it switches between head shots. However, as **stoli** and I pointed out, they are always OTS shots (although occasionally, you can see the entire back of the other actor’s head). ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/6 "2003-01-12T22:56:47Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by MilTan \* > **…It’s true that the scene was shot with only head shots - but they were all over the shoulder shots, and you can see the back of the other actors head each time. I don’t know if this counts as “sharing the screen.”…** No, this kind of shot can be done with an extra doubling for the actor whose face isn’t visible. As stolychnaya notes, they can film the two actors at different times and edit them together. As to the pull-over scene, and the death scene, if you can say that the two actor’s faces are clearly and unambiguously showing at the same time, they count. The TV host-guy actually showed a few frames of the pull-over scene, where Pacino’s face appears at the side of the frame. IMHO, that doesn’t count either, as it wasn’t clearly him. Maybe it’s clearer in the widescreen version, tho. The 4:3 aspect ratio showing likely cut off a significant portion of the face. ---
**Author:** ![Ben\_Hicks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@Ben\_Hicks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ben_Hicks)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/7 "2003-01-13T01:45:51Z")
> [@](#): > > No, this kind of shot can be done with an extra doubling for the actor whose face isn’t visible. As stolychnaya notes, they can film the two actors at different times and edit them together. The question is, Why would they bother? Do they have some off screen feud or something? ---
**Author:** ![Oblong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/c0e974/32.png) [@Oblong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oblong)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 5:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/8 "2003-01-13T05:10:19Z")
I don’t think so. One year at the oscars they presented the Best Picture Award together, I think it was the year Forrest Gump came out. I can’t say for sure because I don’t know them but I’ve never ever read about a fued or any animosity at all. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist but I’m a big De Niro fan so I think I’d have heard about it. Maybe Mann just wanted to maintain some sort of integrity by keeping them as separate as possible. Is there a DVD commentary? ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 9:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/9 "2003-01-13T09:03:15Z")
Want to sit in the same booth where the _Heat_ diner scene was filmed? Go to the [Bob’s Big Boy in Burbank, CA](http://www.bobs.net/) and ask for the Pacino/DeNiro booth. They even have a plaque marking the booth. Cool knowing that they sat there for hours doing that scene - albeit maybe seperately? ---
**Author:** ![Tradnor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cab0a1/32.png) [@Tradnor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tradnor)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 5:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/10 "2003-01-13T17:27:05Z")
I captured some relevant images from the DVD and posted them [here](http://www.geocities.com/tradnor36/heat.html). Spoilers present, obviously. IMO the diner scene is inconclusive, but the car scene convinces me that the two actors shared the screen. Theoretically the two could have been shot separately and digitally composited together, but why bother? ---
**Author:** ![Tradnor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/cab0a1/32.png) [@Tradnor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tradnor)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/11 "2003-01-13T17:28:36Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Oblong \* > \*\*Is there a DVD commentary? \*\* No. Michael Mann has philosophical objections to commentaries, and never does them. ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/12 "2003-01-13T17:45:12Z")
Thanks for the screen caps, **Tradnor**. I didn’t mean to suggest that the players were never together, but rather that I can see how the way that Mann avoids framing them together leads to that rumor. I continue to see it as a choice borne of the desire to show that these two men have chosen very different life paths. I’ll have to watch this one again soon. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2003, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/13 "2003-01-13T22:32:23Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ben Hicks \* > \*\*The question is, Why would they bother? Do they have some off screen feud or something? \*\* There wouldn’t need to be a feud. Just that two big stars have tight schedules, and it’s tougher to schedule them together than separately. It may also be cheaper to film two stars separately. Fewer cameras, microphones, makeup people, etc. needed. If all you’re going to show is the back of one of their heads, there’s really no need to have the actual star there. ---
**Author:** ![cuauhtemoc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecb155/32.png) [@cuauhtemoc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cuauhtemoc)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/14 "2003-01-14T01:52:49Z")
Pacino and DeNiro aren’t feuding. It’s just that the two of them on the screen at the same time would simply be testosterone overload. _Too… much… greaseball…_ Now if you’ll excuse me, there are some men with baseball bats at my door. ---
**Author:** ![AmbulanceChaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4af34b/32.png) [@AmbulanceChaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AmbulanceChaser)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/15 "2003-01-14T14:50:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by cuauhtemoc \* > \*\*Pacino and DeNiro aren’t feuding. It’s just that the two of them on the screen at the same time would simply be testosterone overload. _Too… much… greaseball…_ > > \*\* Pacino provides a double-share in _Heat_, even by his own standards: “Give me all you got! Give me all you got!” “You can get killed walkin’ your doggy.” “What do we got? What do we got?! Bon voyage, mnfer, you were good.” And so forth. There’s a scene where he’s shaking down Hank Azaria that’s really, really fun to send up on a camcorder. ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/16 "2003-01-14T14:53:58Z")
> [@](#): > > Who? Who? What are you, a fuckin’ owl? > [@](#): > > 'Cause she’s got a… _ **GREAT ASS!!!** _ > > And you got your head…_ **ALL THE WAY UP IT!!!** _ ---
**Author:** ![AmbulanceChaser](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4af34b/32.png) [@AmbulanceChaser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AmbulanceChaser)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/17 "2003-01-14T15:18:31Z")
Ferocious, aren’t I? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 9:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/18 "2003-01-14T21:11:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by cuauhtemoc \* > **Pacino and DeNiro aren’t feuding. It’s just that the two of them on the screen at the same time would simply be testosterone overload. _Too… much… greaseball…_** Y’know, it occurred to me after seeing some recent trailers, that Pacino is getting more and more scary as he gets older. His voice is getting raspier and raspier, and the bags under his eyes! My God! De Niro, on the other hand, seems to be getting _less_ scary, what with making comedies with the likes of Billy Crystal and all. Half the time now he seems to be playing warm and fuzzy roles, not scary ones. ---
**Author:** ![stolichnaya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bcef8e/32.png) [@stolichnaya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stolichnaya)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2003, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/19 "2003-01-14T22:16:08Z")
I like this theory. That booth at the Big Boy was where they met, shook hands, and continued on their separate ways. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [December 4, 2012, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pacino-and-deniro-never-shared-a-screen/148196/21 "2012-12-04T17:09:25Z")
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