Laurence Fishburne had politics on his mind when he heard of the furore surrounding the latest trailer for Francis Ford Coppola’s feature film. Megalopolis.
The Oscar-nominated actor spoke with The Hollywood Reporter ahead of the August 30 launch of its new sci-fi thriller Slingshotin which he stars alongside Casey Affleck. The in-demand Fishburne also appears alongside Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito and Nathalie Emmanuel in the upcoming Megalopoliswhich was the subject of controversy last week when Lionsgate pulled the film’s trailer after it was discovered that the promotion included fabricated quotes from well-known film critics about other Coppola projects.
Fishburne, who tells the story of Megalopolis In the trailer, he explains that he was overseas when the tragedy unfolded. It turns out that he was watching footage of the Democratic National Convention when he was informed of the situation.
“I’m here in London, and someone told me about it, but I was busy watching the DNC,” the star says. THR laughing. “I thought, ‘I have to focus on this. I can’t worry about it.’ So I don’t know exactly what it is.”
Fishburne agrees with everyone who has had trouble understanding what exactly happened with the controversial trailer: “Yeah, it’s weird.”
Adam Driver and Nathalie Emmanuel in a scene from Megalopolis.
Courtesy of Lionsgate
Among the fabricated clips in the trailer that do not appear in the published reviews is one by Andrew Sarris. The Voice of the Village part cited as appellant The Godfather a “sloppy and complacent film”, and that of Pauline Kael New Yorker One review reportedly said the film was “let down by its artistry.” Lionsgate has since reportedly parted ways with marketing consultant Eddie Egan, who worked on the trailer.
A long-standing project for Coppola that reportedly cost $120 million to complete, Megalopolis was the subject of debate and was met with a polarizing reaction from audiences when it premiered at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year. The intention of the recent trailer was likely to encourage viewers to question any negative elements Megalopolis reactions that raised fears that critics had gotten the filmmaker’s films wrong, which have since been hailed as masterpieces.
As for Megalopolis Fishburne said he was excited to be collaborating again with Oscar-winner Coppola after appearing in the director’s 1979 classic. Apocalypse Now. Megalopolis hits theaters September 27 and stars Driver as an architect with an ambitious goal of rebuilding a crumbling New York City.
“I’m so grateful to have been able to help Francis, to be there for him and to work with him, Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Aubrey Plaza, Jon Voight, Dustin Hoffman, Shia…
