Francis Ford Coppola Sues Variety For Libel

Francis Ford Coppola has been going back and forth with the media over the production of Megalopolis all summer, specifically following the release of images from the set of the film that came out earlier this summer. On July 26, Variety published an article that featured two videos that looked like they showed the director “trying to kiss young female extras” while filming a nightclub scene.

Following the Variety report, Deadline published their own article about the allegation on July 30, quoting background actor Rayna Menz. She told the publication that Coppola, “did nothing to make me or for that matter anyone on set feel uncomfortable.” This led Variety to publish a follow-up on August 2 with additional allegations for Lauren Pagone, an additional background actor.

Now, Deadline reports that Coppola is suing Variety Media LLC as well as journalists Brent Lang and Tatiana Siegel for $15 million as well as punitive and exemplary damages. Coppola’s eight-page filing touches on the damages caused by the alleged “false and defamatory statements” and “malice” shown towards Coppola in the July 26 article. The intro to the filing reads:

Some people are creative. Very few people are creative geniuses. In the world of motion pictures, Plaintiff Francis Ford Coppola (“Coppola”) is a creative genius. Some people are jealous and resentful of genius. Those people therefore denigrate and tell knowing and reckless falsehoods about those of whom they are jealous. Here, Variety Media, LLC (“Variety”), its writers and editors, hiding behind supposedly anonymous sources, accused Coppola of manifest incompetence as a motion picture director, of unprofessional behavior on the set of his most recent production, Megalopolis, of setting up some type of scheme so that anyone on the set who had a complaint of harassment or otherwise had nowhere to lodge a complaint, and of hugging topless actresses on the set. Each of these accusations was false and knowingly so. They were made to harm Coppola’s reputation and cause him severe emotional distress. That harm has been caused.

The filing continues, stating that Variety knew “that their sources were unreliable” due to the NDA signed by the cast and crew of Megalopolis. The argument continues that by leaking the videos the anonymous crew members “did not tell the truth when they signed the NDA.” “Nonetheless, Defendants relied on these supposed sources and, by doing so, acted with reckless disregard for whether the sources, this time, were telling the truth or not,” the filing continues.

While speaking about the Guardian article where the original allegations were made, Coppola claims that the reporters, “were looking for some sort of dirt” on him. He continued:

The young women I kissed on the cheek, in regards to the New Year’s scene, they were young women I knew. It’s all so ridiculous. Look at the timing of that article. It’s right before we’re about to premiere the film at Cannes. They’re just trying to damage the picture.

We’re all looking forward to the premiere of Megalopolis on September 27.