Francis Ford Coppola apparently gives his own ‘Megalopolis’ a 5-star review

September 19, 2024

Coppola and Adam Driver on set – Lionsgate

Francis Ford Coppola‘s star-studded, mostly self-funded, pet project Megalopolis can’t seem to avoid controversy regarding its reviews.

While he has said he didn’t know how possibly AI-generated fake reviews ended up on a now-deleted trailer for his movie, this latest hiccup literally has his name on it.

Megalopolis now appears on the film enthusiast social media platform Letterboxd, and its user reviews are as mixed as pro critics’ critiques have been — however, among those cineastes who gave the movie a five-star review is apparently one Francis Ford Coppola.

The filmmaker didn’t elaborate on the project, for which he’s spent decades and a fortune of his own money to get to theaters.

One user of the platform wasn’t nearly as kind, snarking Megalopolis “is to Coppola what This Is Me Now…is to J.Lo.”

Ouch.

Incidentally, also among Coppola’s few Letterboxd recommendations are The Last Showgirl — the Pamela Anderson film that happens to be directed by his granddaughter Gia, and which has been getting legitimately glowing reviews; 2023’s The Good Half, directed by Robert Schwartzman, who is Coppola’s nephew; and Between The Temples, a 2024 film starring his other nephew — and Schwartzman’s brother — Jason.

Megalopolis hits theaters Sept. 27.

John Leguizamo, Gina Torres & more featured on ABC special ‘Latinos in Hollywood: Owning Our Destiny’

ABC News Studios

John Leguizamo, Gina Torres and Eva Longoria are among the actors appearing in the new ABC special Latinos in Hollywood: Owning Our Destiny.

The special, part of the network’s monthlong coverage celebrating Hispanic and Latin American Heritage Month, is hosted by What Would You Do? host John Quiñones, with the stars opening up about their careers, and giving insight into the importance of representation and visibility, both in front of and behind the camera.

Leguizamo tells Quiñones he was inspired to produce more Latino-based shows, like his hits Mambo Mouth and Spic-o-Rama, because of what he didn’t see as a child.

“When I was growing up, there was very little of Latin content that I could see myself reflected back in so I started writing my own stuff,” he shares. “I was writing it for Latino youth like myself, so they can see themselves the way we saw ourselves. Vital, alive, intellectual, funny.”

Torres, star of 9-1-1 Lonestar, says she fought to make her character on the show, Tommy Vega, Afro-Latina, sharing it was important to her “because there’s still women and men who don’t understand that they’re important.”

Other actors participating in the special include Edward James Olmos, Will Trent star Ramón Rodríguez, Rita Moreno and Xochitl Gomez.

Latinos in Hollywood: Owning Our Destiny airs Friday on ABC at 8 p.m. ET and streams on Hulu the next day.

Warner Bros. TV paying its teachers more: ‘Abbott Elementary’ gang reportedly getting “major” raises

ABC

There has been a rallying cry in this country to pay our educators more, and Warner Bros. Television has apparently listened — even though the Abbott Elementary cast only pretends to be teachers on ABC.

Deadline is reporting the cast of the show created by producer and co-star Quinta Brunson has gotten “major salary increases” for the fast-approaching fourth season of the series.

According to the trade, the six regular cast members of the series — Brunson, Tyler James Williams, Sheryl Lee Ralph, Janelle James, Chris Perfetti and Lisa Ann Walter — have been given “big” per-episode bumps, in the “triple digit” percentage compared to the last season, in fact.

William Stanford Davis, who plays the wise-cracking janitor Mr. Johnson, was also given a “generous raise,” according to the trade. He only became a series regular in the second season, but according to the trade, he will be pulling in $100,000 an episode.

School is back in session for the fourth season of Abbott Elementary on Oct. 9 at 9:30 p.m. ET on ABC.

‘The Notebook’ closing on Broadway in December

L-R: Tyson and Cardoza – John Lamparski/Getty Images

The Broadway musical The Notebook, based on the beloved Nicholas Sparks book and subsequent romantic film starring Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling, will close in December.

The production’s website just listed Sunday, Dec. 15, as the show’s final performance.

The time-spanning show, the cast of which includes Jordan Tyson, John Cardoza, Maryann Plunkett and Dorian Harewood, started previews on Feb. 10 before having its official opening on March 14.

The production featured music and lyrics by singer-songwriter Ingrid Michaelson and was nominated for three Tony Awards. A national tour will launch in September 2025 at Playhouse Square in Cleveland, Ohio, with other cities to follow.