Top 10 Behind the Scenes Facts about Francis Ford Coppola's Megalopolis

It took Coppola nearly a decade to bring “Apocalypse Now” from script to screen. While wrapping up that production nightmare, Coppola was already conceiving another ambitious project that would take even longer to execute. According to Richard Beggs, who won an Oscar for his sound design on “Apocalypse Now,” they were late into shooting when Coppola envisioned “this magnum opus idea for ‘Megalopolis,’ which would be like a gigantic opera.” While the idea came to Coppola around 1977, it wasn’t until early 1983 that he officially started writing the screenplay for “Megalopolis.” Within two months, he had 400 pages of notes and pieces of the script. Yet, it would be more than four decades until this materialized into a finished film.

From the screenplay’s genesis, Coppola pictured a New York setting with echoes of Catiline Rome. While the script would be rewritten nearly 300 times, this central idea remained a constant. The film takes place in a version of New York City that’s descended into destruction. Architect Cesar Catilina, played by Adam Driver, seeks to construct a utopian city from the ground up. Standing in the way of progress is Mayor Franklyn Cicero, an authoritarian role tailor-made for Giancarlo Esposito. Stuck in the middle is Cicero’s daughter (Nathalie Emmanuel), who embarks on a personal journey in pursuit of life’s purpose. The themes look to the past, present, and future, applying historical events like the Catilinarian conspiracy to modern America and where we’re headed as a society.

In addition to the aforementioned actors, the stacked cast includes Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Chloe Fineman, Laurence Fishburne, Dustin Hoffman, and Coppola’s nephew Jason Schwartzman, to name a few. Of course, “Megalopolis” has been in the works for so long that many stars spanning generations were attached at different points. Around the turn of the century, Robert De Niro, Leonardo DiCaprio, Edie Falco, Uma Thurman, James Gandolfini, and Paul Newman participated in table readings when the script was roughly 200 pages. In recent years, Coppola approached Cate Blanchett, Oscar Isaac, Jessica Lange, Jude Law, Michelle Pfeiffer, Forest Whitaker, and Zendaya, although none of those casting choices panned out. Sonny Corleone himself, James Caan, also nearly reteamed with Coppola before his death in 2022.

Given the film’s title, it’s no surprise that Fritz Lang’s 1927 masterpiece, “Metropolis,” was a key inspiration for “Megalopolis.” Perhaps even more integral to the film’s inception was 1936’s “Things to Come,” which screenwriter H. G. Wells adapted from his novel. Coppola says the “seeds for ‘Megalopolis’ were planted” when he saw William Cameron Menzies’s sci-fi film, which centers on “building the world of tomorrow.” In addition to cinema, Coppola looked to literary works like David Graeber’s “Debt: The First 5000 Years,” Hermann Hesse’s “The Glass Bead Game,” Riane Eisler’s “The Chalice and the Blade,” and Francis Fukuyama’s “The Origins of Political Order,” among others. As different as some of these inspirations may seem, many share themes of politics, society, and humanity.

“Megalopolis” finally started shooting in November 2022, although it wouldn’t be a Coppola production if everything ran smoothly. Almost the entire visual effects crew was let go just over a month into filming. It wasn’t long until the rest of the effects team left. This isn’t the first time Coppola fired his VFX artists, running into similar issues with his “Dracula” adaptation. “Megalopolis” faced another setback when production designer Beth Mickle and supervising art director David Scott resigned, reportedly leaving the film without an art department. While it sounds like history is repeating itself, Coppola claims “Megalopolis” is “on schedule.” Adam Driver also defended Coppola, saying, “The only madness I’ve observed is that more productions aren’t allowed to be as creatively wild and experimentally focused.”

On March 28, 2024, the industry got its first look at “Megalopolis” as numerous A-listers and Hollywood executives gathered for a 10 a.m. IMAX screening. The reactions have been all over the map. One studio bigwig said, “It’s so not good, and it was so sad watching it,” predicting the film would “lose money.” On the positive side, another anonymous viewer “liked it enormously,” although their studio isn’t picking the film up. Whether good or bad, most attendees agreed that the picture would be a tough sell with one saying, “I find it hard to believe any distributor would put up cash.” The early reactions haven’t fazed Coppola, who compared “Megalopolis” to “Apocalypse Now,” a divisive financial gamble that ultimately paid off.

Francis Ford Coppola is no stranger to betting on himself. His risk-taking methods have resulted in hits like “Apocalypse Now,” but also commercial flops like “One from the Heart.” Wherever “Megalopolis” falls, it’s arguably the biggest swing of Coppola’s career. Even with some of the greatest movies ever made under his belt, Coppola couldn’t get any of the major studios to bankroll his sci-fi epic. Coppola ultimately decided to self-finance the production in 2019. Selling a “significant piece of his wine empire,” Coppola invested $120 million out of pocket. It’s been rumored that costs have since grown, although Coppola claims that the film is “on budget.” Akin to Roland Emmerich’s “Moonfall,” the budget might be huge, but this production is technically an indie venture.

While Coppola financed and produced “Megalopolis” through American Zoetrope, there’s still a matter of locking down a North American distributor. Although Coppola’s lawyer Barry Hirsch says, “everything is on the table,” insiders doubt the director will agree to a streaming exclusive release. A champion of the cinematic experience, Coppola says he’s “interested in a theatrical release in theaters and IMAX.” Apple and Amazon MGM have been cited as potential buyers. Both seem like ideal homes for “Megalopolis,” considering that either could arrange a wide theatrical release. Even if the “Megalopolis” isn’t immediately profitable, these two media giants have $80–100 million to burn. For now, “Megalopolis” is set to premiere at the 2024 Cannes Film Festival while Le Pacte will be distributing the picture in France.

After becoming consumed by various other projects, Coppola was committed to making “Megalopolis” his next picture in 2001. Aside from seeking actors, Coppola’s crew shot nearly a half-hour of second-unit footage in New York. These plans were thrown into uncertainty when tragedy struck on September 11. Although Coppola knew he needed to rework the script, he still wanted to prioritize “Megalopolis,” even if he had to finance it himself. Given the real-world parallels, though, Coppola struggled to make a film about New York recovering from a disaster, saying, “I just didn’t know how to continue with it.” Since then, Coppola made three other films, his most recent being 2011’s “Twixt.” With “Megalopolis” coming out 13 years later, this is the longest gap in Coppola’s filmography.

After more than 40 years, Coppola fulfilled this artistic endeavor. Unfortunately, one of the most important figures in his life didn’t live to see the film’s release. Eleanor Coppola was Francis’ wife of nearly 60 years. She was also a talented filmmaker, most notably shooting the documentary footage for “Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse.” On April 12, 2024, a little over a year after “Megalopolis” wrapped, Eleanor passed away at 87. In her memory, Francis released a teaser for his film, stating, “‘Megalopolis’ has always been a film dedicated to my dear wife Eleanor. I really had hoped to celebrate her birthday together this May 4th. But sadly that was not to be, so let me share with everyone a gift on her behalf.”

Are you looking forward to “Megalopolis?” Let us know in the comments.