Adam Driver on Collaborating with Francis Ford Coppola on MEGALOPOLIS – ‘One of the Best Shooting Experiences of My Life’

Adam Driver finished filming Francis Ford Coppolathe upcoming epic film Megalopolisand in a recent interview with Collider, he talks about the fantastic experience he had working on it.

The film tells the story of an architect who dreams of a utopian version of New York in the near future and his battle with the conservative mayor, who has other ideas about the city. Contained within the epic are a myriad of storylines and characters. “The fate of Rome haunts a modern world unable to solve its social problems in this epic story of political ambition.”

There were many rumors that the film’s production was going to be a complete disaster, but those rumors were quickly debunked by Coppola and Driver, who claimed everything was going great! Now Driver is talking about what it was like for him to be a part of this film and work with Coppola, saying:

“Just wrapped it up last night, my cut. I’m operating on two hours of sleep. I finished it, they are still going. But it was one of the best – without hyperbole – the best shooting experiences of my life. Watching him work that crew, that design team, he has such a command of cinematic language and an archive in his mind of such beautiful shots. And to do something so ambitious, and on his own terms, that you’d think it would be dictatorial or really controlled, but he’s the warmest, most open, thoughtful director that he’s just… He really – and this all sounds like being very general, but it really embodies this thing like, “We’re doing this experiment and we’re not interested in how it’s going to play out.” We are interested in the making process.’ And inevitably because of that, the thing you do has no cinematic reference. I think what he did is so unique and interesting. I couldn’t be more proud to be a part of it.”

It’s so beautiful and exciting to hear! I really can’t wait to see how this project turns out! She goes on to say:

“Yeah Yeah. And you would think it would be – and I’ve had this experience before with another director that they’ve been wanting to do for a long time – you would think it would be, ‘I know what it is. Do this and go…” And that would have been fine, but the fact that it gives you so much control and license to work with… not just ignoring the 35 year history of film making, but really being open to what is happening now is really rare. I can’t find all the right words because I’m too tired, but it was incredible, and I think what he has achieved is so visually stunning, but for such a huge audience that it’s hard to describe, that that’s what’s exciting about his films.”

Coppola described the film as “a love story. A woman is torn between loyalties to two men. But not just two men. Every man comes with a philosophical principle. One of hers is her father who raised her, who taught her Latin in her womb and is devoted to a much more classical view of society, the kind of view of Marcus Aurelius. The other, who is the lover, is the father’s enemy but is dedicated to a much more progressive ‘Let’s jump into the future, let’s jump over all this rubbish that has contaminated humanity for 10,000 years. We discover what we really are, that we are an enlightened, friendly, joyful species.’”

Coppola has also previously said of the film, “What would make me really happy? It’s not winning a lot of Oscars because I already have a lot and maybe more than I deserve. And it’s not that I make a lot of money, although I think as time goes on it will make a lot of money because whatever people keep looking at and finding new stuff, that makes money. [Megalopolis] and the society we live in is the only one available to us? How can we improve it? Education, mental health? What the film is really proposing is that utopia is not a place. Is how can we improve everything? Every year, come up with two, three or four ideas that make it better.”

“I’d smile in my grave if I thought something like this happened, because people talk about what movies really mean if you give them something. If you encouraged people to discuss marriage, education, health, justice, opportunity, freedom and all of that wonderful things that human beings have conceived. And ask yourself the question, how can we make it even better? That would be great. Because I bet they would do it better if they had that conversation.”

The cast of the film also includes Shia LaBeouf, Forest Whitaker, Nathalie Emmanuel, Jon Voight, Aubrey Plaza, Jason Schwartzmann, Laurence Fishburne, Grace Vander Waal, Kathryn Hunter, James Remar, Thalia Shire. Dustin Hoffmann, Cloe Fineman (Saturday night live), Isabelle Kusman (Licorice pizza), DB Sweeney (Fire in the sky), Bailey IvesAND Giancarlo Esposito.