The latest trailer for Francis Ford Coppola’s “Megalopolis” is being abruptly recalled over its use of fake movie critic quotes, causing the movie’s distributor, Lionsgate, to apologize to Coppola and the cited critics—many of whom are well-known figures in the movie critic community.
The trailer, released Wednesday, included disapproving quotes from reviews of highly revered movies such as “The Godfather, “Apocalypse Now” and “Bram Stoker’s Dracula”—all of which Coppola directed—in what appeared to be an attempt at promoting “Megalopolis” as a movie that could initially prove divisive among critics, but ultimately stand the test of time.
The quotes were fabricated and do not appear in any of the cited reviews, Variety reported, noting a review of “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” from its own film critic, Owen Gleiberman, was incorrectly cited and actually written while he worked for Entertainment Weekly.
Vulture also confirmed incorrectly cited reviews written by film critics Pauline Kael and Andrew Sarris, the former of whom was misquoted as saying “The Godfather” was “diminished by its artsiness.”
A spokesperson for Lionsgate told Forbes in an email it was immediately recalling the trailer, saying “we screwed up” and chalked up the mistake to an “inexcusable error in our vetting process.”
The trailer also cited fake quotes from critics like Roger Ebert, Vincent Canby and Rex Reed.
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“Even if you’re one of those people who don’t like critics, we hardly deserve to have words put in our mouths,” Gleiberman told Variety. “Then again, the trivial scandal of all this is that the whole ‘Megalopolis’ trailer is built on a false narrative.”
The backlash from the trailer is just one instance of controversy “Megalopolis” has navigated ahead of its Sept. 27 release date. The movie, starring Adam Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel and Aubrey Plaza, had trouble finding a U.S. distributor following its divisive premiere at the Cannes Film Festival in May. “Megalopolis” reportedly scared off potential distributors, who characterized it as “batsh*t crazy” and said there was “no way to position this movie.” Coppola has also been part of the controversy surrounding the movie and was accused of trying to kiss female extras on set, according to The Guardian, which cited unnamed sources familiar with the film’s production, though “Megalopolis” executive co-producer Darren Demetre said in response to the report that there were no “complaints of harassment” regarding on set behavior.
Coppola’s ‘Megalopolis’ Explained: All The Hype And Controversies As Movie Nears Cannes Debut (Forbes)
Francis Ford Coppola’s Divisive ‘Megalopolis’ Finally Lands U.S. Distributor After Months-Long Struggle (Forbes)
Lionsgate Pulls ‘Megalopolis’ Trailer Offline Due to Made-Up Critic Quotes and Issues Apology: ‘We Screwed Up’ (Variety)
