The evolution of Francis Ford Coppola’s Megalopolis is one of Hollywood’s most inspiring and confounding stories. Self-financed to the tune of $120 million, Coppola poured his heart and soul into the concept and making of Megalopolis for 30 years, giving new meaning to the words “passion project.” Unfortunately, many critics did not share his passion for the bizarre, unwieldy fantasy epic, with the film only netting $14.3M at the global box office. Today, a trailer for MEGADOC digs deep into Coppola’s creative process, behind-the-scenes magic, and chaotic approach to making Megalopolis.
Here’s the official synopsis for MEGADOC, courtesy of Utopia:
A raw, fly-on-the-wall documentary about Francis Ford Coppola’s decades-long journey in creating his self-financed passion project, Megalopolis. The bold and unrelenting epic returns in Mike Figgis’ portrait of Coppola’s creative process – weaving together archival material, unfiltered cast interviews, and a close-up view of how the legendary filmmaker drew from Roman history, political allegory, and his own singular vision to shape the world of Megalopolis. This isn’t a record of a production on the brink, it’s a personal memoir unfolding in real time.
Mike Figgis (Leaving Las Vegas, Timecode, Suspension of Disbelief), a filmmaker, writer, photographer, and composer based in London, directs MEGADOC. As Figgis follows Coppola from one outrageous scene to the next, Megalopolis crew and cast members like Francis Ford Coppola, Eleanor Coppola, Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, Giancarlo Esposito, Chloe Fineman, Laurence Fishburne, Dustin Hoffman, Shia LaBeouf, George Lucas, Aubrey Plaza, and Jon Voight lend their insight to the documentary, detailing the methods behind the madness.
MEGADOC is shaping up to be one of the most fascinating documentaries of the year. It will feature questionable creative choices, creator clashes, and nonstop cinematic risks waiting around every camera and marker reset. Thankfully, Francis Ford Coppola didn’t make Megalopolis to impress critics or satisfy a studio obligation. He made it for “fun,” which is refreshing to hear in this day and age.
MEGADOC opens in select theaters on Friday, September 19, and is an Official Selection of the 2025 Venice Film Festival and the 2025 Telluride Film Festival.
What did you think about Megalopolis? Are you digging the MEGADOC trailer? Let us know in the comments section below.
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