‘Megalopolis’ Trailer Taken Down After Using Fake Review Quotes

Less than 24 hours after the trailer for Francis Ford Coppola’s polarizing epic Megalopolis was released, the video was taken down for using fake negative quotes from film critics.

In a statement from a Lionsgate spokesperson, per Variety, the company said it was “immediately recalling our trailer for ‘Megalopolis,’” and apologized 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.”

The pulled trailer took the offensive against the smattering of real, bad post-Cannes reviews, and opened with a look back at the director’s career and critical assessments of Coppola’s previous masterpieces like The Godfather, Apocalypse Now, and Dracula. However, the video featured negative quotes from well-known film critics — including Pauline Kael of The New Yorker, Vincent Canby of The New York Times and Roger Ebert of The Chicago Sun Times — that were no where to be found, according to Vulture.

According to the outlet, the trailer also included fake quotes from Andrew Sarris in The Village Voice and Rex Reed in The New York Observer. Megalopolis is set to arrive in theaters on Sept. 27.

Earlier this month, Megalopolis garnered controversy after Coppola was accused of kissing female extras without their consent. “I was in shock. I didn’t expect him to kiss and hug me like that,” said one of the women, Lauren Pagone, Variety reported. “I was caught off guard. And I can tell you he came around a couple times.”

This article was updated on at 8:56 p.m. ET on Aug. 21 to include a statement from a Lionsgate spokesperson.

From Rolling Stone US.