Megalopolis: Francis Ford Coppola Allegations Explored As Executive Producer Denies On-Set Harassment Claims
Francis Ford Coppola, who spent 35 years making Megalopolis, was accused of inappropriate behavior against female extras by several sources, Guardian reports
Francis Ford Coppola Accused of Inappropriate Behavior Toward Female Extras ( Photo Credit – IMDb )
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In a recent report, Francis Ford Coppola was accused of allegedly harassing on-set female extras on the set of his new movie Megalopolis. Arguably, one of the most prominent filmmakers of our time, Francis Ford Coppola, shared an epic teaser trailer for his upcoming film “Megalopolis” which he described as his “best work” on Tuesday, May 14, ahead of its world premiere at the Cannes International Film Festival.
On the same day the teaser dropped on YouTube and stunned viewers, Guardian published an article that alleged that Coppola demonstrated inappropriate behavior around female extras while on his Megalopolis passion project set. The article accused Coppola of exhibiting “old school” behaviour on sets, including refusing to utilize digital techniques and instead subjecting the actors to gruelling shooting process to “achieve the effect through old-school methods, using projectors and mirrors,” a source told the Guardian.
Several sources from the movie who described their experience on-set as unpleasant also accused Coppola of inappropriate behavior around women. The source alleged Coppola was notorious for pulling women to sit on his lap and forcibly trying to kiss some of the topless and scantily clad female extras to “try to get them in the mood” for the scenes.
In response to comments about Coppola’s on-set behaviour, Megalopolis’ executive co-producer Darren Demetre said he was unaware of the filmmaker’s behaviour with the cast and crew. He said, “I was never aware of any complaints of harassment or ill behaviour during the course of the project.”
Demetre also denied the allegation that Francis Ford Coppola forcefully kissed topless extras on set and explained that the director “walked around the set to establish the spirit of the scene by giving kind hugs and kisses on the cheek to the cast and background players” to help inspire and establish the club atmosphere. He also praised Coppola for staying true to his “old-school” methods of shooting scenes, describing them as his “creative vision.”
Per multiple reports, Francis Ford Coppola, who has created cinematic masterpieces like The Godfather trilogy, took 35 years to bring Megalopolis to the big screen. The movie, described as “a Roman Epic fable set in an imagined Modern America,” stars Adam Driver, who plays an idealistic artist named Cesar Catilina in the lead. “Megalopolis” also stars Shia LaBeouf, Dustin Hoffman, Jon Voight, Nathalie Emmanuel, Giancarlo Esposito, Aubrey Plaza, Talia Shire, Jason Schwartzman, Grace VanderWaal, Chloe Fineman, James Remar and D.B. Sweeney.
