Francis Ford Coppola originally conceived of Megalopolis in the 1980s. He's tried multiple times to get the film financed, and as such, has cast and recast it many times over. Coppola is, of course, a living legend who has directed some of the most indelible screen performances of all time.
If there's anybody who could assemble a stellar cast of talent for a sprawling dystopian epic it would be him. Megalopolis is now in theaters, and despite having to wait forty years to get it made, Coppola did bring together an impressive list of names.
In the interest of exploring "what ifs," though, we felt it would be fun to look back at the superstars who were attached to star at the film at one point or another. Buckle your seatbelts, there are a lot.
Coppola conducted A-list table reads in 2001
The first actor approached for a role in Megalopolis was Matt Dillon. The actor worked with Coppola on the teen dramas The Outsiders and Rumble Fish (1983), and was asked whether he wanted to play the part of a cadet who goes AWOL. He agreed, but by the time production started to gain traction in 2001, the actor was deemed too old.
2001 is a pivotal year in the Megalopolis story. Coppola conducted table reads in Brooklyn, and the talent he assembled is nothing short of astounding. The actors who read include Nicolas Cage, John Travolta, Meryl Streep, Kevin Spacey, and Russell Crowe. In short, a who's who of the biggest and brightest names in Hollywood at the time. This is all detailed in a 2010 Vanity Fair profile.
It doesn't stop there. Other names who were considered for supporting roles in Megalopolis included Paul Newman, James Gandolfini, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Coppola's dual leads from The Godfather Part II, Robert De Niro and Al Pacino. Unfortunately, the events of September 11 put a halt to the pre production. Coppola would have to wait two more decades to bring his vision to the screen.
Coppola was forced to recast James Caan's role
Giancaro Esposito was an actor considered during the 2001 table reads, and he is the only one who actually managed to stay the course. He was eventually cast as the Mayor Franklyn Cicero in the final film. James Caan, another Godfather alum, was slated to play the supporting role as the head of the Crassus National Bank. Caan's passing in 2022 led to the role being recast with Jon Voight.
Jon Hamm told the Back to One podcast that he also participated in a Megalopolis table read, but was baffled by how Coppola was going to make the film a reality. He recalled sitting with Pacino and Shia LeBeouf, another actor who made the final cast list, and marveled at the ambition.
Now, audiences everywhere can marvel at the ambition of Megalopolis in theaters.