Francis Ford Coppola, 85, defends Megalopolis trailer amid scandal

Renowned director Francis Ford Coppola, 85, hit back at his critics in the star-studded new trailer for his upcoming epic Megalopolis.

The film was plunged into controversy in May when he was accused of hugging and kissing a female extra unannounced while filming a nightclub scene.

Now a full-length trailer has dropped, showcasing the movie’s all-star cast including Adam Driver, Aubrey Plaza and Shia LaBeouf.

In a striking touch, the sneak peek begins with a defiant opening sequence in which Coppola takes aim at those who have written him off before.

A montage shows pull quotes from the old dismissive reviews of some of his best-loved works – The Godfather, Apocalypse Now and Bram Stoker’s Dracula.

Renowned director Francis Ford Coppola . 85, hit back at his critics in the star-studded new trailer for his upcoming epic Megalopolis, led by Adam Driver (pictured)

The film was plunged into controversy in May when Coppola was accused of hugging and kissing a female extra unannounced while filming a nightclub scene

The critics who are called out were all famed in their profession, heightening the impression of Coppola going up against the odds.

Andrew Sarris is slated for calling The Godfather ‘a sloppy self-indulgent movie’ and Rex Reed is quoted denouncing Apocalypse Now as ‘an epic piece of trash’ while Roger Ebert refers to Bram Stoker’s Dracula as ‘a triumph of style over substance.’

‘One filmmaker has always been ahead of his time,’ says a man in voiceover, introducing the next movie ‘from visionary writer and director Francis Ford Coppola.’

Viewers are plunged into the futuristic world of New Rome, a combination of high-octane technology and a look inspired by classical antiquity.

The plot is partly influenced by an infamous coup attempt in the Roman Republic, led by the warrior-statesman Catiline against ruling consuls Cicero and Hybrida.

They enter the mind of the main character Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver), an architect whose artistic genius and innovation puts him squarely at odds with the status quo.

New Rome has been devastated by an accident, which Catilina sees as an opportunity to revamp a formerly crumbling town into a gleaming, sci-fi utopia.

‘Is this way of living the only one that’s available to us?’ Catilina asks, envisioning a newfangled world that he can design.

However New Rome is a corrupt and divided society, with a decadent elite indulging in excess while ignoring the deprived and increasingly furious masses.

Now a full-length trailer has dropped, showcasing the movie’s all-star cast including Driver, Aubrey Plaza (pictured) and Shia LaBeouf

‘One filmmaker has always been ahead of his time,’ says a man in voiceover, introducing the next movie ‘from visionary writer and director Francis Ford Coppola’; LaBeouf pictured

Viewers are plunged into the futuristic world of New Rome, a combination of high-octane technology and a look inspired by classical antiquity

They enter the mind of the main character Cesar Catilina (Adam Driver), an architect whose artistic genius and innovation puts him squarely at odds with the status quo

New Rome has been devastated by an accident, which Catilina sees as an opportunity to revamp a formerly crumbling town into a gleaming, sci-fi utopia

He finds himself pitted against New Rome mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito), who wants to preserve the city’s previous modus vivendi

Caught in the middle is the mayor’s daughter Julia (Nathalie Emmanuel), who is carrying on a sweeping romance with Catilina

He finds himself pitted against New Rome mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito), who wants to preserve the city’s previous modus vivendi.

Caught in the middle is the mayor’s daughter Julia (Nathalie Emmanuel), who is carrying on a sweeping romance with Catilina.

Julia has also caught the fancy of Catilina’ scousin Clodio Pulcher (Shia LaBeouf), who at one point appears to be leading a street agitation.

In a striking scene in the trailer, Pulcher leads a massive throng of protestors holding signs with his name, as he yells: ‘Power to the people!’ into a megaphone.

Catilina however keeps his eye set on his goal, and even when he is told that ‘people need help now,’ he replies: ‘Don’t let the now destroy the forever.’

Julia even seems disturbed by the singlemindedness of Catilina’s vision, asking him what will become of the people who ‘stand in your way.’

Aubrey Plaza meanwhile also makes a brief appearance as a TV anchor called Wow Platinum, displaying her typical sardonic tone as an actress.

Famous names from New Hollywood – the era that made Coppola a famed director – have also been sprinkled among the cast.

Among them is none other than Coppola’s sister Talia Shire, beloved by fans as mafia scion Connie Corleone in the Godfather trilogy.

‘Is this way of living the only one that’s available to us?’ Catilina asks, envisioning a newfangled world that he can design

However New Rome is a corrupt and divided society, with a decadent elite indulging in excess while ignoring the deprived and increasingly furious masses

Julia has also caught the fancy of Catilina’ scousin Clodio Pulcher (Shia LaBeouf), who at one point appears to be leading a street agitation

Catilina however keeps his eye set on his goal, and even when he is told that ‘people need help now,’ he replies: ‘Don’t let the now destroy the forever’

Julia even seems disturbed by the singlemindedness of Catilina’s vision, asking him what will become of the people who ‘stand in your way’

Aubrey Plaza meanwhile also makes a brief appearance as a TV anchor called Wow Platinum, displaying her typical sardonic tone as an actress

Among the cast is none other than Coppola’s sister Talia Shire, beloved by fans as mafia scion Connie Corleone in the Godfather trilogy

Jon Voight (pictured) and Dustin Hoffman are in the film as well – 55 years after they co-starred as a prostitute and a con man in Midnight Cowboy

Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman are in the film as well – 55 years after they co-starred as a prostitute and a con man in Midnight Cowboy.

Laurence Fishburne, Jason Schwartzmann, Chloe Fineman, Kathryn Hunter, Grace VanderWaal and James Remar are featured in the film too.

The trailer dropped three months after an extra whom Coppola allegedly kissed on the set of Megalopolis broke her silence on the scandal.

A week earlier, Variety published two short behind-the-scenes videos shot while Coppola, 85, and his crew were filming a club scene in Atlanta that appeared to show the director leaning in to multiple actresses who were dancing.

One of the women in the video – Lauren Pagone – who appeared in multiple scenes in Megalopolis as an extra, says she was dancing during a live take of the club scene when Coppola allegedly approached her, pulled her towards him and hugged and kissed her.

She told Variety: ‘I was in shock. I didn’t expect him to kiss and hug me like that. I was caught off-guard. And I can tell you he came around a couple times.’

Pagone said she decided to come forward when another extra seen in one of the two videos, Rayna Menz told Deadline the Oscar winner ‘did nothing to make me or for that matter anyone on set feel uncomfortable.

Variety published two short behind-the-scenes videos shot while Coppola and his crew were filming a club scene in Atlanta that appeared to show the director leaning in to multiple actress who were dancing and allegedly kissing them

She said: ‘I don’t appreciate anybody speaking for me. I would never speak for that actress. I’ve kept my mouth shut. I’ve kept quiet.

‘But it’s frustrating that she’s putting out there, “Hey, it was great for everyone” when she doesn’t know what other people were feeling. You can’t speak for anyone but yourself. My experience was different.’

Menz did not respond to an email from Variety requesting additional comment.

Pagone – who has worked on shows including Paramount+’s Mayor of Kingstown and Apple TV+’s City on Fire said on every other project she had done, an intimacy coordinator was on hand during any scenes in which there was nudity.

According to a call sheet reviewed by the publication – several actresses were cleared to go topless for the nightclub sequence. Pagone was not nude and wore a top with a plunging neckline.

Megalopolis intimacy coordinator Samantha McDonald previously told Variety that neither she nor fellow intimacy coordinator Ashley Anderson were on set for the nightclub scene, filmed on Feb. 14, 2023, at Atlanta’s Tabernacle concert hall.

Another member of the cast claimed to Variety in recent days that they had seen Coppola kissing ‘multiple women’ during a different scene involving a New Year’s Eve celebration.

It was claimed before filming started Coppola told the extras that he ‘wanted them to act as they would at a typical holiday party and kiss each other at the end of the countdown’ and added that he might jump in and kiss a few people himself.’

She told Variety : ‘ I was in shock. I didn’t expect him to kiss and hug me like that. I was caught off-guard. And I can tell you he came around a couple times.’; pictured May 17 in Cannes, France

It was alleged that after calling cut, Coppola ‘got up, stopped multiple women as they passed him and kissed them on the cheek.’

The insider added: ‘The women that I saw being kissed did not see him coming. He just basically grabbed them and planted the kiss on them without any kind of consent. They all kind of laughed it off for a moment and then I could tell that they were just surprised.’

The crew member that shot the video that Variety initially posted and who was on set during almost all of the shoot confirmed that Coppola kissed female extras during the New Year’s Eve sequence – and added it was one of ‘several instances’ in which he had kissed extras.

The cast member added their experience on se
t was ‘super weird and uncomfortable’ and probably their ‘worst experience on a set ever’.

Sources told the publication because Coppola financed the $120 million epic himself, there was no-one to complain to about his alleged behavior.

The crew member also alleged that Coppola kept ‘leaping up to hug and kiss several women, often inadvertently inserting himself into the shot and ruining it’.

They claimed that after multiple takes, Coppola got on a microphone and announced to everyone in the room: ‘Sorry, if I come up to you and kiss you. Just know it’s solely for my pleasure.’

Dailymail.com has contacted representatives for Francis Ford Coppola for comment.

This comes days after Menz wrote that Variety’s story had a ‘misleading headline’ in an Instagram statement.

‘None of the claims about @francisfordcoppola are true; it was an honor to work with such a legend,’ she wrote. ‘This video was taken on a CLOSED set that prohibited self phones [sic] specifically for the safety of all actors.

‘I am disgusted by these allegations & hope everybody will see the truth for what it is,’ Menz added.

Menz, said in a statement posted Tuesday to her Instagram Stories that she was ‘disgusted’ by allegations that Coppola had behaved unprofessionally

While speaking to Deadline , Menz claimed that the 85-year-old Oscar winner ‘did nothing to make me or for that matter anyone on set feel uncomfortable’

In addition to the Variety piece, a Hollywood Reporter piece claimed that the budget on his Adam Driver–starring epic Megalopolis was ballooning, but a source close to Coppola later told Variety that it came in ‘on budget’ and ‘on time’; still from Megalopolis

In another longer video showing Coppola — who was announced as an upcoming Kennedy Center Honors recipient earlier this month — interacting with multiple actresses, he appears to kiss at least on on the cheek, but it’s unclear if he kissed other women, as he was seen from behind and at a significant distance.

While speaking to Deadline, Menz reiterated that she ‘felt disgusted’ and was ‘blindsided’ by the publication of the videos because the scene in question allegedly had a ‘closed set,’ in which the crew is reduced to the absolute minimum and outside visitors are barred.

Closed sets are typically used in situations in which actors are filming nude scenes, or sometimes for particularly emotional scenes that may be disrupted by extraneous people on set.

‘That someone had video of that is just ridiculous and super unprofessional,’ Menz continued.

It’s unclear if the person or persons who shot the videos were allowed to be on the allegedly closed set, and if there were any prohibitions against filming the shoot.

‘It’s gross because he only ever spoke about how wonderful his wife is,’ Menz said, adding that Eleanor Coppola was on set most days. The videos were published as Coppola was heading to a memorial service for Eleanor, who died in April at 87; pictured in France in 2019

‘It’s gross because he only ever spoke about how wonderful his wife is,’ Menz said, referring to the documentarian and filmmaker Eleanor Coppola, who died in April at age 87. ‘His wife was on set with us, most days. It feels gross, seeing that video and they way they were trying to convey a message. Just gross.’

According to Deadline, the release of the on-set videos caused ‘much pain’ for Coppola, as the story was published as he was en route to meet up with his children and relatives for a family memorial service dedicated to Eleanor.

She met Coppola while working on the set of his feature directorial debut, the low-budget horror film Dementia 13 (1963), and the two m
arried later that year. She was best known for directing the classic documentary Hearts Of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse, which took a behind-the-scenes look at Coppola’s famously troubled production of Apocalypse Now.

Francis and Eleanor had three children: the filmmakers Sofia and Roman Coppola, and their oldest son Gian-Carlo, who was killed in a tragic boat accident in 1986 at only 22.

Griffin O’Neal, the son of the late actor Ryan O’Neal, who had been cast in Coppola’s film Gardens Of Stone at the time, later pleaded guilty to negligent operation of a boat and was recast in Coppola’s film.

Menz continued, claiming that allegations that Coppola had been unprofessional with his female actors were ‘all false.’

‘In fact, I was the one who asked him to dance,’ she said of the video featuring her. ‘I asked him to dance, in front of everybody else.

‘That’s why it’s so funny that this story came out. He even said, something along the lines of — mind you it was over a year ago so this is not a proper quote — but he said something like, “I’m a gentleman, and I would never say no to a lady,”‘ she recalled. ‘And then we waltzed, to club music.’

Menz said, ‘In fact, I was the one who asked him to dance. I asked him to dance, in front of everybody else’; Coppola pictured in 2022 in Hollywood

She called Coppola ‘nothing but professional, a gentleman,’ and said ‘he was like this cute Italian grandfather, running around the set.’

‘It was just so much fun. He’s a nice generous person,’ Menz added.

The story also noted that Coppola’s epic Megalopolis allegedly came in ‘on time’ and ‘on budget,’ contrary to a Hollywood Reporter story in which a production source claimed the budget was ballooning and raised questions about whether filming would have to be halted.

Coppola eventually put in $120 million of his own money — much of which came from his eponymous wine business — to finance the film, and he is also responsible for self-funding its promotion.