Remember in January when the trades claimed Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” was in danger of not being completed?
Part of me wanted the rumored chaos to be true. After all, Coppola’s masterwork “Apocalypse Now” is well-known to have had one of the most batsh*t crazy productions in film history.
As far as we know, Coppola is again denying that “Megalopolis” had any production troubles. He confirmed it again today to Deadline:
Well, ‘Apocalypse Now’ was out there being edited for months and months and months. And because it had been made in the Philippines, it was sort of mysterious. “[With ‘Megalopolis’] it was much the same thing. A rumor starts out; there was a report about chaos. But the source was no source.
That’s that, that’s if you take Coppola’s word for it.
Coppola continued, “From my point of view, I was on schedule, which, on a big, difficult movie, is hard to do. I love my actors, and there is not one of them I would change. The movie has a style that went beyond my expectations. That’s sincerely how I feel. The most important thing is the life the film might have when eventually it cuts together and blossoms.”
Reading this interview, you get the sense that Coppola is very confident about what he has here with “Megalopolis,” calling it a “wonderful film.” I hope he’s right.
Production wrapped on all the main parts of “Megalopolis” in March. I assumed a very lengthy post-production process would commence, especially after Coppola confirmed that this would likely be a 2024 release.
The film is about an architect who tries to rebuild New York as a utopia following an apocalyptic disaster. It stars stars Adam Driver, Forrest Whittaker, Jon Voight, Nathalie Emmanuel, Laurence Fishbourne, Shia LaBeouf, Aubrey Plaza, Talia Shire, and Dustin Hoffman.
Coppola sold a large share of his successful winery to back the $120 million project. He adds that he’s not even looking for a distributor:
I’m not looking for a distributor as much as a distribution partner because the movie has already been made and financed. It has to be in theaters for its initial opening; it’s the way it’s designed to look and behave. I’m most interested right now in arriving at the edit when it’s the film I want. My guess is it’s not coming out this year, so we’ll see.
“Megalopolis” has turned into one of the great legends of cinema, up there with Kubrick’s “Napoleon.” The fact that the “what could have been?” has now turned into a completed production is damn-near miraculous.
I actually find that number optimistic. Tickets for “Digger” go on sale next Tuesday, and presales will give us a better picture of how bad it’s looking.