The company “Lionsgate“ (Lionsgate) pulls the new trailer for the movie “Megalopolis” of Francis Ford Coppola, the Associated Press reported. On Wednesday, it was revealed that the critics' quotes added to the trailer were fabricated, BTA reported.
“Lionsgate immediately withdraws “Megalopolis” trailer,“ a company spokesman said in a statement to The Associated Press. “We offer our sincere apologies to the critics affected, as well as to Francis Ford Coppola for this error. We were wrong. Sorry”.
The trailer, released earlier Wednesday, included quotes from critics such as Pauline Cale and Roger Ebert about other Coppola films. There are no such reviews for his new movie. It seems the intention was to highlight the critical disagreement with Coppola's already classic films such as “The Godfather” and “Apocalypse Now”. The trailer credits Cale with a quote saying that in “The Godfather” “there is a bit of artistry”. However, the truth is that Cale really likes “The Godfather” and she did not write such a phrase in her review of the film for the magazine “New Yorker" in March 1972, Ebert also did not write that “Dracula” Coppola's is a “triumph of style over substance”.
„Megalopolis“ has been decades in the making and received very mixed reviews when it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year. The production is also under scrutiny for alleged misconduct on set after footage leaked of Coppola hugging and kissing extras during a club scene.
The film will have its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival next month, before hitting theaters on September 27.