Director Francis Ford Coppola screened his upcoming film Megalopolis at the Cannes Film Festival this year. In an interaction with the press shared by Variety, when asked if he was afraid of the future, he had a response that also pulled actor Jon Voight into the conversation. (Also Read: Megalopolis first reactions: Francis Ford Coppola’s ‘delirious fever dream’ of a film divides audience)

‘Anyone who was alive during WWII saw the horrors’

While his sci-fi film presents hope, a reporter asked Francis how ‘afraid’ he really was of the future? “It’s obvious that in your film, there’s hope. But how afraid are you about our future? And what scares you the most, maybe that men like Donald Trump are in charge thinking?” asked a reporter.

Francis replied, “Well, men like Donald Trump are not in charge at the moment, but there is a trend happening in the world. And I don’t want to monopolise, but you know, there is a trend happening towards the more neo-right. Even fascist tradition, which is frightening because anyone who was alive during World War two saw the horrors that took place, and we don’t want, we don’t want to repeat that.”

He also said that the role of artists is to shine a light on what’s happening in the world before putting Jon on the spot. “Maybe, Jon, you have different political opinions. And you know, if I may say, one of the things about our wonderful cast is that they reflect all sorts of political ideas. This is not just one notion. How do you feel about the future? How can we make a beautiful world I know you have children and grandchildren; how can we make a beautiful world for the children?” he added.

About Megalopolis

Megalopolis is written, directed, and produced by Francis. Set in an imagined New York City following a devastating disaster, the film features an ensemble cast that includes Adam Driver, Giancarlo Esposito, Nathalie Emmanuel, Aubrey Plaza, Shia LaBeouf, Jon Voight, Jason Schwartzman, Talia Shire, Grace VanderWaal, Laurence Fishburne, Kathryn Hunter, and Dustin Hoffman. The film premiered at Cannes and left critics polarised.