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Lionsgate Pulls ‘Megalopolis’ Trailer Offline Due to Made-Up Critic Quotes and Issues Apology: ‘We Screwed Up’

Lionsgate is recalling its latest trailer for Francis Ford Coppola’s epic  “Megalopolis”“  which featured many fabricated quotes from famous film critics.

“Lionsgate is immediately recalling our trailer for ‘Megalopolis,’” a Lionsgate spokesperson said in a statement . “We offer our sincere apologies to the critics involved and to Francis Ford Coppola and American Zoetrope for this inexcusable error in our vetting process.  We screwed up.  We are sorry.”

The trailer, released on Wednesday morning, aimed to position Coppola’s latest film as a work of art that would withstand the test of time, much like his previous masterpieces “The Godfather” and “Apocalypse Now.”

The video included several quotes from critics panning Coppola’s previous work — but none of the phrases, attributed to the likes of Roger Ebert and Pauline Kael, could be found in any of their reviews

It’s not clear where most of the quotes featured in the trailer came from — with the exception of Roger Ebert’s comment, “a triumph of style over substance,” which was actually pulled from his 1989 review of “Batman,” and not about “Dracula,” as indicated in the trailer.

The trailer snafu is the latest in a string of scandals befalling the $120 million production, which Coppola financed entirely himself. Last month, Variety obtained a video depicting Coppola trying to kiss young female extras on the set of the project, as additional crew members detailed his unprofessional behavior during production.

 

“Megalopolis” hits U.S. theaters on Sept. 27.

Written by William Tobias

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