``The Godfather Part III'' will be released this Christmas, Paramount Pictures said Monday, ending speculation that the troubled sequel to the Corleone family saga would not come out this year. After a weekend screening of an unfinished print of the last chapter in writer-director Francis Ford Coppola's trilogy, senior Paramount executives elected to release the film Dec. 25 to approximately 1,800 theaters nationwide. ``The Godfather Part III'' originally was to open Thanksgiving, but a variety of production delays forced its postponement. The first two installments in the trilogy won nine Academy Awards and grossed $800 million. The latest film, expected to cost about $50 million, is the most anticipated holiday release. The sequel, which picks up the Corleone family two decades after 1974's ``The Godfather Part II'' left off, stars Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, Andy Garcia and Coppola's own daughter, Sofia. In the film, Don Corleone (Pacino) attempts to legitimize his family's investment businesses, which once hinged on gambling. The original ``Godfather'' opened in 1972. In a statement, Coppola said: ``After one of the most intensive production schedules in my career, I am deeply satisfied that `The Godfather Part III' has come together in a way that gives me great pride.''
