Francis Ford Coppola sells luxury watches after going broke on ‘Megalopolis’

“The Godfather” director Francis Ford Coppola is promoting a number of luxurious watches from his private assortment, together with a customized timepiece price greater than $1 million, after dropping most of his wealth financing his decades-long ardour mission “Megalopolis.”

The 86-year-old Oscar-winning filmmaker reportedly invested $120 million of his personal fortune into making the epic sci-fi movie, which grossed simply $14.3 million on the world field workplace upon its September 2024 launch.

In accordance with De new york times, Coppola has additionally brazenly admitted that the movie bankrupted him.

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Now, seven of Coppola’s prized watches will go on sale at Phillips public sale home in New York Metropolis on December 6 and seven.

“I want some cash to maintain the ship afloat,” he instructed the New York Occasions final Friday, a day after Phillips, which makes a speciality of luxurious watches, introduced the sale.

“The Godfather” director Francis Ford Coppola admitted he was broke after his epic movie “Megalopolis” flopped on the field workplace. (Stephane Cardinale – Corbis/Corbis by way of Getty Photographs)

The public sale will characteristic Coppola’s distinctive watch, the FP Journe FFC Prototype, which is estimated to start out at over $1 million and is anticipated to be the highest prize of the sale.

The timepiece was designed by Coppola himself over the course of eight years in collaboration with grasp watchmaker François-Paul Journe.

The opposite six different luxurious watches from Coppola’s private assortment embody an FP Journe, two Patek Philippes, a Breguet Classique, an IWC Portugieser Chronograph and a Blancpain Minute Repeater.

In the meantime, Coppola stated he hardly ever wore the FFC and instructed the Occasions the timepiece was too costly to insure.

“I’ve solely worn it just a few instances,” Coppola stated.

A kind of moments was on the Cannes premiere of “Megalopolis,” which he wrote, directed and produced.

Coppola has spent $120 million of his private fortune to comprehend his ardour mission. (Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Photographs)

The movie featured an ensemble solid led by Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito and Nathalie Emmanuel, alongside Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Laurence Fishburne, Dustin Hoffman, Jason Schwartzman, Talia Shire, Chloe Fineman, Grace VanderWaal, Kathryn Hunter and James Remar.

‘The town of New Rome should change, inflicting battle between Cesar Catiline [Driver]a genius artist who desires to leap right into a utopian, idealistic future, and his opposition, Mayor Franklyn Cicero [Esposito]which stays dedicated to a regressive establishment, perpetuating greed, particular pursuits and partisan warfare,” reads the official synopsis for “Megalopolis.”

‘Between them the socialite Julia Cicero is torn aside [Emmanuel]the mayor’s daughter, whose love for Cesar has divided her loyalties, forcing her to find what she actually believes humanity deserves,” it added.

Other than its field workplace bombings, “Megalopolis” acquired divided responses from critics. Some praised Coppola for his ambition and refusal to play it secure, however the reward was outweighed by criticism, calling the movie disjointed and self-indulgent.

The movie solely earned $14.3 million on the worldwide field workplace. (Scott A Garfitt/Invision/AP)

“Megalopolis” gained two Razzies on the forty fifth Golden Raspberry Awards, together with Worst Director for Coppola and Worst Supporting Actor for Voight. Coppola accepted his award jokingly an Instagram post whereas additionally condemning the movie business for being “cowardly” and never taking dangers on unique concepts.

The five-time Oscar winner in contrast himself to French filmmaker Jacques Tati, who bankrupted himself making the 1967 movie “Playtime.” Nonetheless, the satirical comedy was later praised by many critics as among the best movies of all time.

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“What an honor to face subsequent to an ideal and brave filmmaker like Jacques Tati, who utterly impoverished himself to make considered one of cinema’s most beloved failures: PLAYTIME! My honest because of all my good colleagues who, along with me, created our murals, MEGALOPOLIS, and let’s remind ourselves that the field workplace is just about cash, and that similar to struggle, stupidity and politics don’t have any actual place in our future.”

Megalopolis additionally acquired largely unfavourable responses from critics. (Lionsgate by way of AP)

Coppola made his fortune primarily via the success of the trilogy ‘The Godfather’ and ‘Apocalypse Now’. He later expanded his wealth via enterprise ventures, most notably his Napa Valley wineries, luxurious resorts and way of life manufacturers, which grew to become a significant supply of revenue exterior of filmmaking.

In 2021, the chief bought his Coppola vineyard model to Delicato Household Wines in a deal price roughly $650 million. Nonetheless, he leveraged his curiosity within the wine sector and reportedly took out loans of as much as $200 million to finance ‘Megalopolis’.

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“I’ve no cash as a result of I invested all the cash I borrowed into making ‘Megalopolis,’” he instructed music producer Rick Rubin throughout a March look on the “Tetragrammaton” podcast.

“It is principally gone,” Coppola added. “I believe it would come again in 15 or 20 years, however I haven’t got it now.”

“Megalopolis” is broadly thought of Coppola’s worst monetary catastrophe, though the director’s dangerous movies have led to different main losses.

His 1982 movie ‘One from the Coronary heart’ was beforehand his largest loss. The movie price roughly $26 million to supply and earned solely $637,355 on the field workplace – a catastrophic flop.

Coppola has stated he believes “Megalopolis” will finally turn into worthwhile. (Getty Photographs)

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It was the primary characteristic movie produced by Zoetrope, who financed the mission with financial institution loans, personal buyers and Coppola’s private ensures.

Initially meant as a romantic comedy with a modest price range of $2 million, Coppola’s imaginative and prescient for the movie was drastically expanded throughout manufacturing, resulting in skyrocketing prices. He believed that “One from the Coronary heart” may revolutionize filmmaking via using groundbreaking know-how, together with his “digital cinema” course of, and show that unbiased artists may compete with Hollywood studios.

The monetary blow from “One from the Coronary heart” bankrupted Zoetrope Studios later that yr. Coppola, who had invested tens of millions of {dollars} from his actual property holdings within the movie, was left with massive money owed, which he labored to repay for years. For a lot of the Nineteen Eighties, he needed to direct extra business movies to repay his loans.

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In 1988, Coppola suffered one other monetary setback resulting from his movie “Tucker: The Man and His Dream”, which grossed $19 million towards a price range of $24 million. Though effectively acquired by critics, it was one other business disappointment that made its monetary restoration sluggish.

Nonetheless, Coppola has constantly stated that he values ​​creative achievement over cash. Throughout his look on the “Tetragrammaton” podcast, he acknowledged that he must make his subsequent movie “very cheaply” resulting from his losses in “Megalopolis.”

“As a director, I do not care if I lose all the cash I’ve,” he stated. “I did not do that to earn a living, I did this to do one thing higher than making a living.”

Coppola made most of his fortune from the success of “The Godfather” and “Apocalypse Now” trilogy, in addition to from his wine manufacturing firm. (FilmPublicityArchive/United Archives by way of Getty Photographs)

Throughout his interview with the NYT, Coppola stated he believes “Megalopolis” will in the end be worthwhile.

“Plenty of my movies make a revenue over time,” he instructed the outlet.

Coppola pointed to his 1979 struggle movie “Apocalypse Now.” The movie price roughly $31 million to supply, which was thought of an enormous sum within the late Seventies and much exceeded the unique price range of $12 million.

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“Apocalypse Now” was an enormous hit with critics and gained two Academy Awards for Finest Cinematography and Finest Sound. It additionally acquired six different nominations, together with Finest Image and Finest Director.

Resulting from its monumental price range, the movie plunged Coppola and his studio Zoetrope Studios, which he based with George Lucas, into massive short-term money owed. Nonetheless, it was a field workplace success, later finally incomes a worldwide gross of $150 million via a long time of recent releases and residential video.

Nonetheless, “Megalopolis” is unlikely to be an enormous moneymaker on the size of “Apocalypse Now,” which benefited from a special period of the movie financial system. Business insider.

In contrast to the house video increase of the Nineteen Eighties and Nineties that benefited movies like “Apocalypse Now,” these income streams are a lot weaker right this moment, which Coppola has acknowledged.

Coppola has beforehand stated he “by no means cared about cash.” (Picture by Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP)

Moreover, Coppola has not but made the movie accessible on streaming platforms. In Could he has told GQ that he intentionally delayed the streaming or bodily launch as a result of the movie is “nonetheless displaying in theaters,” and he would not need viewers to personal it anymore.

He has additionally beforehand stated that he’s conserving ‘Megalopolis’ from streaming as a result of he felt it needs to be seen on the large display with an viewers, as he meant when creating it.

A number of months after “Megalopolis” premiered, Coppola began telling individuals he was broke, in keeping with the NYT.

Throughout a press convention for ‘Megalopolis’ in Cannes in Could 2024, Coppola stated he “by no means cared about cash,” in keeping with People magazine.

“I’ve no issues with funds. And yet one more factor: my kids, with out exception, Sofia, Roman and my granddaughter Gia, have great careers with no fortune. They do not want a fortune,” he stated.

Coppola is pictured together with his son Roman Coppola, spouse Eleanor Coppola and daughter Sofia Coppola at a 2007 premiere in Rome, Italy. (Ernesto Ruscio/FilmMagic)

Coppola shared his son Roman, 59, and daughter Sofie, 53, together with his late spouse Eleanor, who died in 2024 on the age of 87.

The 2 had been additionally dad and mom to son Gian-Carlo, who died on the age of twenty-two in a boating accident in 1986. Roman has labored as a second director on a number of Coppola movies, together with “Megalopolis,” whereas Sofia is an Academy Award-winning director and producer.

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The director’s granddaughter, Gia, the one baby of Gian-Carlo and Jacquie de la Fontaine, can be a director whose current movies embody 2024’s “The Final Showgirl.”

Sofia adopted in her father’s footsteps and have become an Oscar-winning director. (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP)

Throughout his speech in Cannes, Coppola additional defined his philosophy on cash.

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“It would not matter…the cash would not matter,” he stated, in keeping with Folks.

“What’s vital is mates,” Coppola added. “As a result of a good friend won’t ever abandon you; cash can evaporate.”