Francis Ford Coppola refuses to quit, and I kind of respect him for it.
Per Deadline, "Megalopolis" is returning to theaters on October 24, followed by a live-streamed Q&A with Coppola himself. It will be moderated by his son Roman Coppola, who served as second-unit director on the film. Audience members will be encouraged to text in their questions before, during and after the screening, with Coppola answering the best ones live.
Yes, you read that right. Phones out, during a movie, with the director's blessing. No word yet on whether this is the recut version of "Megalopolis" that Coppola has been tinkering with for over a year now, the one he wants to make "weirder,” titled “Megalopolis Unbound.”
Let's remember what we're dealing with here. Coppola sank roughly $120M of his own money into this thing, selling off part of his wine empire to do it. It premiered at Cannes in 2024 to widespread confusion, then opened to around $4M domestically that September. It was one of the most spectacular commercial failures in recent memory. Lionsgate cut its losses, pulled it from theaters, and gave the rights back to Coppola, who has refused streaming deals. No Blu-ray release. Nothing. You can't even rent it on Amazon; the listing shows "rights expired."
Look, "Megalopolis" is a mess. I'm not going to pretend otherwise. The performances are all over the map, the dialogue is often baffling, and its ideas are murky. But it's the mess of an 87-year-old master who bet his own fortune on a vision nobody else would fund. How many filmmakers would even dare? None. There's something almost heroic about a guy who refuses to accept reality.
The question is whether time will be kind to “Megalopolis,” the way it eventually was to, say, “One from the Heart” or, to a lesser extent, “The Cotton Club.” My gut says it'll find its cult. Whether it's an ironic one or a sincere one is another matter.
SIDE NOTE: Coppola was supposed to start production in Italy on his next film, "Glimpses of the Moon," in September, but there's been no update since. I gather it's been delayed again.
Audience members will be encouraged to text in their questions before, during and after the screening, with Coppola answering the best ones live.