The trailer for 'Megalopolis' was pulled after the emergence of counterfeit critic reviews.
The movie, being a personal endeavor for Coppola, features Adam Driver, Shia LaBeouf, Giancarlo Esposito, and Grace VanderWaal.
It "draws very loose inspiration" from Coppola's reading about the Catilinarian Conspiracy, an event that occurred in 63 BC.
At the core of this event was a prominent Roman aristocrat, Lucius Sergius Catiline, who was plotting to overthrow the Roman Republic. Success in his coup would have led to the ousting of the current ruling class and the liberation of both the upper and lower classes from debt.
This director financing the film himself, has already ignited controversy among film critics.
Vulture was the first to raise concerns about the authenticity of critic quotes criticizing Coppola's previous works like "The Godfather", which appeared in the first trailer for "Megalopolis". The publication mentioned that marketing campaigns have a history of using divisive critic quotes about future classics to demonstrate how wrong critics can be.
In the beginning, it seemed like this new trailer for Francis Ford Coppola's long-awaited, decades-in-the-making "Megalopolis" was implementing this strategy, revisiting criticisms of Coppola's earlier masterpieces. These weren't just any critics; the comments were from prominent figures such as Pauline Kael and Andrew Sarris, two giants in the world of film criticism. However, it appears that they may not have actually made these comments.
Lionsgate, the film's studio, has since withdrawn the trailer and issued an apology.
"Lionsgate is immediately recalling our trailer for Megalopolis," the apology reads. "We extend our heartfelt apologies to the critics involved and to Francis Ford Coppola and American Zoetrope for this unforgivable oversight in our vetting process. We made a mistake. We are sorry."
CNN has reached out to Lionsgate for additional comments.
The film's unique approach and star-studded cast have generated significant buzz in the entertainment industry.
Despite the controversy surrounding the source of critic quotes in the trailer, the anticipation for Coppola's 'Megalopolis' remains high, promising an engaging entertainment experience.
