The latest trailer for Francis Ford Coppola’s upcoming film “Megalopolis” has been pulled offline by Lionsgate, after it was found to feature made-up quotes from well-known film critics.
The decision came Wednesday, the same day the trailer was released, showcasing negative yet still fabricated reviews of Coppola’s earlier works like “Apocalypse Now” and “The Godfather.”
“Lionsgate is immediately recalling our trailer for Megalopolis,” a spokesperson for the studio told Variety. “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.”
Erroneous quotes cited famous film reviewers such as Roger Ebert, Pauline Kael and Andrew Sarris, among others. At one point, Kael was falsely quoted as describing “The Godfather” as “diminished by its artsiness.”
Another mistake involved a comment from Roger Ebert about Tim Burton’s “Batman,” which was incorrectly presented as a critique of Coppola’s “Bram Stoker’s Dracula.”
The quotes were intended to show how wrong past critics have been about Coppola’s “genius,” as the voiceover put it.
The trailer mishap is the latest in a series of controversies surrounding the $120 million self-financed production. Just last month, videos emerged that appeared to show Coppola grabbing and kissing young female extras on set without their consent.
One of the women involved, Rayna Menz, later came forward to dispute the claims, stating that she felt comfortable on set and was blindsided by the videos.
“Megalopolis,” described as a Roman epic set in a fictional modern America, stars Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Aubrey Plaza and Dustin Hoffman, and is slated for release in the U.S. on Sept. 27.