After decades in the making, Francis Ford Coppola has finally set the cast of his passion project Megalopolis.
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According to Deadline, the highly anticipated film is set to feature a star-studded cast that includes Adam Driver, Forest Whitaker, Nathalie Emmanuel (Game of Thrones and Fast X), Jon Voight, and Laurence Fishburne, all of whom have joined on for main roles in the film. The finalizing of the main cast marks the end of a long journey for the film, which had been rumored to star Oscar Isaac for some time before the star reportedly exited the film last year.
For Fishburne specifically, this marks a huge return to the world of Coppola, as one of Fishburne’s first-ever roles in acting career was under the legendary director, appearing in the iconic film Apocalypse Now in 1979. Megalopolis has been Coppola’s passion project since the 1980s. Set in modern-day America, it reportedly centers around the aftermath of a devastating disaster, where an architect wants to rebuild New York City as a utopia. The 82-year-old filmmaker has confirmed that the story will get to explore timely themes, while also featuring Roman epic influences.
“The concept of the film is a Roman epic, in the traditional Cecile B. DeMille or Ben-Hur way, but told as a modern counterpart focusing on America,” Coppola explained. “It’s based on The Catiline Conspiracy, which comes to us from ancient Rome. This was a famous duel between a patrician, Catiline, and that part will be played by Oscar Isaac, and the famous Cicero, who will be Forest Whitaker. He is now the beleaguered mayor of New York, during a financial crisis, close to the one that Mayor Dinkins had. This story takes place in a new Rome, a Roman epic sent in modern times. The time set is not a specific year in modern New York, it’s an impression of modern New York, which I call New Rome.”
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There have been many times in the past that Coppola tried to start the production on the project. However, due to certain unchangeable setbacks including directorial obligations to The Godfather trilogy and the 9/11 attacks, making Megalopolis a reality has indeed become a difficult task for the filmmaker. Despite this, his determination hasn’t wavered through the years, and he is still confident that he’ll be able to finally make his dream project.
