‘Megalopolis‘ is Francis Ford Coppola’s dream project. He has invested over 40 years of his life and over $120 million from his own income in the film. While investing this much of his efforts in the movie, he also made sure that the casting was perfect.
Coppola didn’t want it to be a lecture for the viewers, hence he picked controversial actors with a back story for the movie. It was interesting to pick politically challenging people and work with them, as he has recently revealed.
Francis Ford Coppola Wanted To Make A Movie That Could Not Be Deemed Woke
Francis Ford Coppola recently told Rolling Stone about the efforts that went behind making ‘Megalopolis‘. Given the political nature of the film, he didn’t want it to be just “some woke Hollywood production.”
He revealed that he deliberately cast controversial actors like Jon Voight, who has made headlines for his outspoken views and his loud support for Donald Trump, and Shia LaBeouf, who was accused of sexual assault in 2021.
“What I didn’t want to happen is that we’re deemed some woke Hollywood production that’s simply lecturing viewers,” Coppola said. “The cast features people who were canceled at one point or another. There were people who are archconservatives and others who are extremely politically progressive. But we were all working on one film together. That was interesting, I thought,” he added.
Moreover, Coppola praised LaBeouf and enjoyed working with him. He hasn’t appeared in any of the projects since the accusations against him. “Shia [LaBeouf] really took to it,” Coppola said. “I had no experience working with him prior to this, but he deliberately sets up a tension between himself and the director to an extreme degree. He reminds me of Dennis Hopper, who would do something similar, and then you’d say, ‘Just go do anything,’ and then they go off and do something brilliant.”
In case you missed: “Money Doesn’t Matter”: Francis Ford Coppola Defends Self-Financed $120 Million Passion Project Of 40 Years ‘Megalopolis’
‘Megalopolis’ Divided Critics After Its Premiere At The Cannes Film Festival
‘Megalopolis‘ stars Adam Driver as an architect who dreams of an Utopian city after the catastrophic incident leaves New York City like Metropolis in ruins. Later, his plans make him the enemy of the city’s ruthless mayor and other powerful figures in the narrative.
The supporting cast of the movie also includes Aubrey Plaza, Dustin Hoffman, Laurence Fishburne, Giancarlo Esposito, and Nathalie Emmanuel.
The movie had various controversies revolving around it during its premiere at the Cannes Festival, including Francis Coppola smoking marijuana during the shooting of the movie and kissing the extras during a party.
Moreover, an additional controversy erupted this month when Lionsgate had to take down the video of the trailer from their platform as it features made-up quotes from movie critics.
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