Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis will finally hit theaters in 2024, and after 40 years of development, a lot is riding on this sci-fi film. The legendary director, known for masterpieces like The Godfather (1972), Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1992), and Apocalypse Now (1979), hasn’t released a movie since 2011’s Twixt, seemingly putting all his energy into the idea he first came up with back in the 1980s. It’s been a long, expensive road making Megalopolis, and whether or not the film is a success will significantly impact Coppola’s legacy in the future.
Megalopolis will be set following a terrible disaster that sees New York City fall to ruin. With nothing left but ashes, architect Caeser (Adam Driver) takes this opportunity to reconstruct the city from the ground up, but this time, it will be a utopia. However, the city’s mayor (who is also the father of Caeser’s lover) has a different idea of what New York should become. According to Coppola (via Deadline), Megalopolis will be “unusual” and will make use of his years of experience culminating in his own “voice and aspiration.” The director notes that it is “not within the mainstream of what is produced now.” Coppola’s film finally finished filming in 2023 and will be released in 2024—40 years after he first conceived.
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Why Megalopolis Has Taken So Long
Coppola first began talking about Megalopolis in the 1980s, and though he pursued getting the project started back then, it was difficult to get studios on board. Megalopolis‘ concept required a massive budget, and though Coppola had an impressive resume, he had developed a reputation for overreaching funds. In 1981, the director released his most significant box office bomb, One from the Heart, which made getting Coppola’s passion project funded even more complicated. Ultimately, he decided to pay the production budget for Megalopolis himself. So, for a couple of decades, the director made more movies and saved more money.
By the turn of the century, Coppola finally had Megalopolis off the ground, but the catastrophic events of September 11, 2001, caused him to halt production. The director felt that a movie about destruction in New York City would be in poor taste following the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Coppola also noted that his vision for Megalopolis, which included a “generous and friendly future,” had been shattered in the face of terrorism (via The Playlist). Twenty years later (40 years after the film’s initial inception), however, the director has finally managed to get through production for Megalopolis.
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Why Megalopolis Is A Big Risk For Francis Ford Coppola
Since Megalopolis is an idea 40 years in the making, a lot is riding on this sci-fi movie’s 2024 release. Expectations are high, and since Coppola financed the project himself, spending upward of $120 million, it’s a substantial financial risk for the 82-year-old director. It took him several years to come back from what he lost on One From the Heart, which was also self-financed, and despite the buzz surrounding Megalopolis, it’s always possible that this will be repeated.
However, Coppola has shared (via GQ) that he couldn’t care less about the financial risks of making Megalopolis. If the film were to fail, it wouldn’t be his first time filing bankruptcy, and at this point in his career, Coppola no longer cares about the opinions of the Hollywood studios. Megalopolis is a story that he truly believes in and has dreamed of getting on the screen for decades. So, no matter the result, the director will be happy with his art.
Will Megalopolis Be A Success?
Though Coppola isn’t too worried about whether his film flops, it certainly seems to be set up for success. Science fiction is arguably more popular now than ever, with films like Dune and Avatar showing that audiences are hungry to explore the “what ifs” of the future and technology. Additionally, Coppola has described Megalopolis as an optimistic representation of society’s trajectory, and this is just enough of a twist on the standard dystopian sci-fi that it could stand out against other new releases.
Then, there’s the star-studded cast of Megalopolis. Adam Driver will be joined by Grace VanderWaal, Sonia Ammar, Shia LaBeouf, Aubrey Plaza, Isabelle Kusman, Nathalie Emmanuel, and more—all of whom are sure to bring excellent performances that will make Coppola’s film something spectacular. In all, the 40 years and the buckets of cash that the director has put into Megalopolis won’t be for nothing. Surely, this will be another of his masterpieces (regardless of how much money it makes).
