So, you remember that trailer for Megalopolis we posted yesterday? Well, you can’t find it anywhere online anymore. Why’s that? Well, Lionsgate is taking the heat for posting something that never should’ve gone out in the first place.
If you recall, the Megalopolis trailer begins with a flurry of negative review quotes from critics of Francis Ford Coppola’s earlier masterpieces, such as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now. Okay, kindof an interesting approach but not unprecedented. Sometimes the marketing strategy is to lean into negative buzz, and Megalopolis had some coming out of its Cannes world premiere. It’s a good way to pique curiosity, and show that sometimes the critics have no idea what the Hell they’re talking about. Hey, I get it.
Here’s the thing: the review quotes were fabricated…but attributed to actual people. So it didn’t take long for people to spot it. Vulture did a pretty good job of charting the bogus quotes. But why did this happen and whose head is going to roll for it? This is so damn stupid and makes no sense at all.
“Lionsgate is immediately recalling our trailer for ‘Megalopolis,’” said the studio. “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.”
Megalopolis already has an uphill battle. It’s an expensive movie that critics are already polarized about. Coppola hasn’t made a hit film in literally decades. And now the film has this self-afflicted wound and no trailer to promote. Dumb dumb dumb.
Assume a newly cut trailer will arrive soon, but is the damage already done?
Megalopolis opens in theaters on September 27th.
