Francis Ford Coppola, 85, seen ‘attempting to kiss’ feminine extras on set

Francis Ford Coppola was seen ‘trying to kiss young female extras’ in shocking new footage of the Oscar-winning director on set of his upcoming sci-fi epic, Megalopolis.

Earlier this year in May, the 85-year-old filmmaker was initially accused of attempting ‘to kiss topless and scantily clad female extras’ during production of the movie – which is set to hit theaters later this year on September 27.

And on Friday, Variety obtained two videos that had been taken by a crew member on set of Megalopolis last year in February while shooting a nightclub scene.

In the clips, Coppola could be seen strolling through a crowded dance floor filled with female extras as music blared loudly from speakers – and seemingly approached a few while trying to kiss and hug them.

The scene – which also featured one of the leading stars in the ensemble cast, Nathalie Emmanuel – was filmed at the Tabernacle concert hall in Atlanta, Georgia. 

According to a call sheet which was also obtained by Variety, background actors portraying female party guests were ‘cleared for topless nudity’ while others were ‘cleared for scantily clad.’ 

Around 150 to 200 people were on the set to film the nightclub scene, which also included Coppola and other crew members.  

Sources claimed to the outlet that Coppola had behaved with ‘impunity’ on set, while also acting ‘unprofessional.’ 

An insider further claimed that Francis would try to approach the female extras amidst filming a scene, and would accidently place himself into the shot. 

‘I’ve worked with really important directors and that behavior is uncommon – the most I’ve ever seen any director do is say something like, “high energy, guys,”‘ the source told Variety. 

‘I’ve never seen anyone on set, and this extends to a camera operator, so much as touch an actor.’ 

The insider also claimed that at one point during filming the scene, Coppola announced into a microphone, ‘Sorry, if I come up to you and kiss you. Just know it’s solely for my pleasure.’ 

Due to no outside studio or streaming service being involved with the production, there was not an HR department during filming. 

A separate source stated, ‘Because Coppola funded it there was no HR department to keep things in check. Who were they supposed to talk to? Complain to Coppola and report Coppola to himself?’ 

However, intimacy coordinators Samantha McDonald and Ashley Anderson worked on the film, but both were not on set during the nightclub scene. 

McDonald explained to Variety, ‘I can’t really speak to the reason why they chose to bring us in when they did and not when they didn’t.’ 

A few months earlier in May, a report published by The Guardian detailed the conduct of Francis amid the making of the motion picture, quoting multiple insiders who ‘felt that Coppola could be “old school” in his behavior around women.’

Eyewitnesses told the outlet that during production of a scene at a club that the famed filmmaker ‘came on to the set and tried to kiss some of the topless and scantily clad female extras.’ 

The Detroit-born director, who made The Godfather trilogy as well as Apocalypse Now (which also had a famously-chaotic production), premiered the film at the Cannes Film Festival in May. 

Darren Demetre, a producer on the motion picture, explained to the outlet that Coppola had been trying to set a tone for the room with his actions during production of the club scene.

‘There were two days when we shot a celebratory Studio 54-esque club scene where Francis walked around the set to establish the spirit of the scene by giving kind hugs and kisses on the cheek to the cast and background players,’ Demetre said.

Demetre said that the filmmaker’s hugging and kissing of performers ‘was his way to help inspire and establish the club atmosphere, which was so important to the film.’

Demetre, who said he was ‘one of the first assistant directors and an executive producer’ of Megalopolis, added that he ‘was never aware of any complaints of harassment or ill behavior during the course of the project.’

Demetre said that Coppola was successful in his execution in all aspects of making the motion picture, which features Adam Driver at the head of an ensemble cast.

Demetre said that Coppola was successful in his execution in all aspects of making the motion picture, which features Adam Driver at the head of an ensemble cast. 

‘Francis successfully produced and directed an enormous independent film, making all the difficult decisions to ensure it was delivered on time and on budget, while remaining true to his creative vision,’ he said. 

The report from The Guardian indicated that multiple crew members were dissatisfied with their experiences on the set of the motion picture, which saw significant turnover in its visual effects and art teams.

‘This sounds crazy to say,’ a crew member said, ‘but there were times when we were all standing around going: “Has this guy ever made a movie before?”‘

Another crew member said of the mood on set: ‘We were all aware that we were participating in what might be a really sad finish to his career.’

A crew member said that the creative process on the motion picture was frustrating and inefficient amid Coppola’s disorganization and insistence on overseeing all aspects of the production.

‘He would often show up in the mornings before these big sequences and because no plan had been put in place, and because he wouldn’t allow his collaborators to put a plan in place, he would often just sit in his trailer for hours on end, wouldn’t talk to anybody, was often smoking marijuana,’ the crew member said.

The crew member said that ‘hours and hours would go by without anything being filmed. And the crew and the cast would all stand around and wait.

‘And then he’d come out and whip up something that didn’t make sense, and that didn’t follow anything anybody had spoken about or anything that was on the page, and we’d all just go along with it, trying to make the best out of it.’

The confused crew on a daily basis would ‘walk away shaking our heads wondering what we’d just spent the last 12 hours doing,’ the crew member said.

Amid the making of the movie, Coppola was also dealing with the illness of his wife Eleanor Coppola, who died at the age of 87 in April of this year. 

Eleanor had been present on the set of the movie ‘until her illness prevented her from being there,’ a spokesperson told The Guardian.

Along with Adam Driver and Nathalie Emmanuel, other stars that were cast in the forthcoming project include Dustin Hoffman, Giancarlo Esposito, Shia LaBeouf, Aubrey Plaza, Jon Voight, Chloe Fineman and also D.B. Sweeney. 

The premise follows, ‘An architect wants to rebuild New York City as a utopia following a devastating disaster,’ per an official IMDB synopsis. 

Coppola not only directed Megalopolis, but also wrote the screenplay and self-financed the film with a whopping budget of $120 million.