While he may not be the Godfather character who gets the most attention, Robert Duvall’s Tom Hagen is one of the most important figures in Francis Ford Coppola’s legendary trilogy. Vito Corleone’s adoptive son and consigliere, Hagen is a cool head who’s always the source of sage advice for whoever is the head of the Corleone crime family at the time, whether it’s Vito or Michael. Yet in the third movie of the trilogy, The Godfather Part III, Hagen is nowhere to be seen, with a cursory reference made to his death in relation to his son becoming a priest.

Hagen didn’t return for The Godfather 3 because Robert Duvall ultimately refused to join the project, due to a contractual disagreement over his acting fee in relation to Al Pacino’s for the part of Michael Corleone. Coppola and his co-screenwriter Mario Puzo had originally intended to feature Hagen as one of the main characters of the third movie, until Duvall confirmed he wouldn’t rejoin the Godfather cast. The two writers then decided to take a less-is-more approach to killing him off, just as they had done with Peter Clemenza in The Godfather Part II.

Robert Duvall’s Tom Hagen Died Before The Events Of The Godfather Part III

His Death Occurred Sometime Between The 2nd & 3rd Movies

In The Godfather Part III, it’s briefly mentioned that Tom Hagen died at some point after the events of the first Godfather sequel, but before his son, Andrew Hagen, was ordained as a Catholic priest. Andrew’s presence in the movie, as portrayed by John Savage, keeps the memory of Duvall’s character alive, and links him indirectly to the events of the story.

Based on the years in which each of the Godfather movies were set, we can guess that Hagen must have died in the 1960s or the early 1970s. His son apparently became a priest several years before the events of The Godfather Part III, which take place in 1978, and Hagen was still alive throughout The Godfather Part II, which takes the Corleone family’s story up to 1959.

According The Godfather’s Revenge, Nick Geraci Killed Tom Hagen

Geraci Was Out For Revenge Against The Corleone Family

However, a literary work that takes after the Godfather movies, Mark Winegardner’s novel The Godfather’s Revenge, is more precise about the time and nature of Tom Hagen’s death. Just as Winegardner’s previous novel The Godfather Returns shows us how Salvatore Tessio died after the first movie, The Godfather’s Revenge describes what happened to Hagen in graphic detail.

It was a former Corleone caporegime Nick Geraci who supposedly murdered Hagen in 1964, as an act of revenge against the family for attempting to use him as collateral in a hitjob. It’s important to stress that while this is the most detailed explanation of Tom Hagen’s death, Winegardner’s version of the story hasn’t been authorized by the owners of the Godfather franchise’s IP, Paramount Pictures, so is technically considered non-canon. The expanded Blu-ray release of The Godfather Part III contradicts Winegardner’s account, by revealing that Hagen died in the 1970s.

Nick Geraci Drowned Tom Hagen In Florida’s Everglades In 1964

The Godfather’s Revenge Describes Hagen’s Final Moments

Nevertheless, if we are to take The Godfather Revenge’s account of Tom Hagen’s death as the most definitive, then he met his end drowning in a swamp in Florida’s Everglades. Nick Geraci kidnapped him, knocked him unconscious, tied him up, and locked him in his car. He pushed the car into the swamp. The novel describes Tom Hagen waking up during his final moments, and realizing he’s about to die. Geraci then sent Michael Corleone Hagen’s wallet in the mouth of a baby alligator, in an allusion to the “swimming with the fishes” scene that confirmed Luca Brasi’s death in The Godfather.

The Godfather Part III with Hagen in it would have been a different movie altogether, and it’s now difficult to imagine Robert Duvall’s character returning in retrospect. In this way, Mark Winegardner’s version of his death honors one of the most important characters in the Godfather trilogy by giving us the explanation we’re looking for about why he mysteriously vanished from the picture after The Godfather Part II.

The Godfather

The Godfather is one of the most iconic and influential film franchises in cinematic history. Based on Mario Puzo’s 1969 novel of the same name, the series chronicles the rise and fall of the powerful Corleone crime family. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, the franchise consists of three films that explore the complex dynamics of organized crime, loyalty, and family. The films are celebrated for their outstanding performances, direction, and thematic depth, especially regarding power, betrayal, and morality within the Mafia world. The first two films, in particular, are widely regarded as some of the greatest films ever made.

Created by

Mario Puzo, Francis Ford Coppola

First Film

The Godfather

Latest Film

The Godfather Part III

Cast

Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, John Cazale, Talia Shire, Andy Garcia, Sofia Coppola