Francis Ford Coppola Wraps Production on Epic ‘Megalopolis’

Filming has wrapped on the latest film from director Francis Ford Coppola, his epic “Megalopolis” starring Adam Driver. The film announced the news on the production wrap with a new Instagram account along with a photo of a truly mega-sized clapboard featuring the film’s title.

That puts a pin in what is hopefully no more drama for the film, which back in January was the subject of a media report that described the shoot as being in chaos after the departure of several of the film’s key creative talent. But both Coppola and Driver pushed back hard on that report, putting out media statements that painted “Megalopolis” as one of the finest experiences of Driver’s career. “Apocalypse Now” this was not, they argued.

“All good here! Not sure what set you’re talking about! I don’t recognize that one! I’ve been on sets that were chaotic and this one is far from it,” Driver said in a statement to IndieWire back in January after the initial report. “The environment that’s being created by Francis, is one of focus and inspiration. As of now, we’re on schedule, making our days, and honestly, it’s been one of the best shooting experiences I’ve had.”

That wasn’t even Driver’s last word on the subject, as he later gushed in an interview over how “unique and inventive” the film was and that it had no other frame of reference for what audiences would see.

Filming kicked off on “Megalopolis” in Atlanta last fall.

Still, some skepticism was warranted about whether we’d ever get to see it. Initial reports pegged the budget for “Megalopolis” at over $120 million, much of it largely financed by Coppola himself, though a source close to the production told IndieWire back in January disputed reports that the budget had been ballooning and said the ultimate budget was closer to $100 million. And any film fans know Coppola has long been regarded as one of the poster children for troubled film shoots.

“Megalopolis” is Coppola’s first film since 2011’s “Twixt,” and the film currently does not have a distributor, though it does have a cast that includes Driver, Nathalie Emmanuel, Forest Whitaker, Laurence Fishburne, Jon Voight, Talia Shire, Shia LaBeouf, Jason Schwartzman, and Dustin Hoffman. The film is a futuristic story set in New York City, in which an architect aims to rebuild the city as a utopia following a devastating disaster. And Coppola has also been tinkering with fancy visual effects tech similar to what’s been used on “The Mandalorian,” which has contributed to the higher filming budget.

Hopefully, we’ll get some first-look images from “Megalopolis” very soon through this new account. Check out the production wrap announcement below.