The financial prospects of Francis Ford Coppola’s new film Megalopolis aren’t looking good. The new movie from the famed director of Bram Stoker’s Dracula and The Godfather trilogy comes out this weekend. Megalopolis is a sci-fi epic that centers around an ambitious architect who attempts to reconstruct the city of New Rome into a utopia after a devastating disaster. It features an impressive cast, which includes Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Nathalie Emmanuel, Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, and Laurence Fishburne.
A report from Variety says that Coppola’s Megalopolis is expected to open to a $5 to $7 million box office draw. This news is concerning considering the movie’s massive budget. Coppola financed it himself, putting $120 million into it. Lionsgate is distributing and marketing the movie and will receive a fee in exchange. It will screen in 1,700 movie theaters across North America; it is important to note that the single-digit projection is for the movie’s domestic total only. The other major movie releasing this weekend is Universal’s The Wild Robot, which is projected to earn between $24 and $30 million.
What This Means For Megalopolis
Megalopolis Is Not In A Good Position
Megalopolis has faced a tumultuous marketing campaign riddled with hardship, controversy, and, ultimately, intrigue. The film has so far opened to divisive reviews from critics. It currently has a 50% Rotten Tomatoes score from critics. While this should have sparked interest from viewers to see what the hubbub’s about, these latest projections suggest that this is far from the case, and that audiences are taking a different message away.
Adding to the discord surrounding Megalopolis, a trailer featured AI-generated quotes attributed to well-known critics that seemed to slam previous Coppola movies, but were in fact swiftly proven to be false. Lionsgate pulled the spot after heavy criticism. The controversy doesn’t stop there. Coppola himself made fans scratch heads when he gave his upcoming film a perfect rating on Letterboxd. The prediction that Megalopolis is going to make under $10 million in its opening weekend only seems to confirm the scandal hasn’t paid off, and that the movie isn’t going to be an instant hit.
Our Take On These Megalopolis Projections
Heavy Competition On Its Opening Weekend Doesn’t Help
Megalopolis faces fierce competition in its opening weekend, as an earlier September release, Tim Burton’s darkly whimsical Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, is still going strong at the box office. On top of that, The Wild Robot is also debuting, and its position is far more favorable. Its status as a family-friendly animated movie opens it up to a wider audience, and it currently holds a near-perfect score from critics on Rotten Tomatoes, a 99%. Megalopolis’ controversy-ridden release can’t quite hold up to that.
The seeming failure of Megalopolis might just be a misstep from the director instead of a sign that Coppola has lost his touch.
Despite heavy criticism, most of Coppola’s films have become genuine classics, including The Godfather trilogy and Apocalypse Now. However, as the stats line up before the new film’s release, it’s possible that his latest movie won’t see the same success. It’s a disheartening scenario, considering the filmmaker’s previous success and established talent. However, the seeming failure of Megalopolis might just be a misstep from the director instead of a sign that Coppola has lost his touch.
Source: Variety
