Adam Driver on ‘Megalopolis’ & Working With Francis Ford Coppola
There are only a handful of actors with a film resume as compelling as Adam Driver’s. He has worked with the likes of Martin Scorsese, Steven Soderbergh, Noah Baumback, Spike Lee, the Coen Brothers, and now Francis Ford Coppola.
It’s very much a testament to the actor’s malleability and his understanding of the work required of him. Driver’s roles have earned him several award nominations, including two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, two BAFTA Awards, four Emmy Awards, four Screen Actors Guild Awards, and a Tony Award.
To his credit, Driver, 40, isn’t phased by his success — or by the auteurs he’s had the opportunity to collaborate with. He comes across as gracious and giving, pausing to reflect before responding. It’s easy to see that his knowledge of the craft is his armour that he guards himself with, instantly naming films that he equates to extremes in cinematic history.
“[Francis Ford Coppola] made a movie at his age about creating a utopia, not a dystopia, because he still — in spite of what seems to be a bleak future — believes in human genius.”
Adam Driver
Megalopolis, which is in theatres Friday, is a Roman drama set in an imagined modern America. Rome needs to change, causing conflict between Cesar Catilina (Driver), a genius artist who seeks to leap into an idealistic future, and his opposition, Mayor Franklyn Cicero (Giancarlo Esposito), who remains committed to a regressive status quo.
When tapping into the psychology of legends and visionaries with the likes of Caesar, I wondered about Driver’s own legacy and whether he reflects on it. “I don’t know, probably a guy with a lot of hair,” he quipped, his deadpan delivery taking me by surprise.
He then added, “What I like about film is that it’s not necessarily high or low, but film is Jaws and film is Down by Law. It’s these extremes and I feel like I’ve been really lucky to do things that are different, because they’re made by different people who have different interests.”
In an interview ahead of the Megalopolis premiere at TIFF, he tells me: “I have no expectation of what that would add up to, other than, ‘That guy was lucky to get to work with the people that he got to [work with].’”
Driver graduated from Julliard in 2009; he made his Broadway debut in 2010, with a production of George Bernard Shaw’s Mrs. Warren’s Profession. It’s why Francis Ford Coppola’s style of filming was one that Driver thoroughly enjoyed. Their shared background in theatre and improv allowed them to experiment.
“Movies being performed live… that’s where the future takes us. Theatre and films are more connected than we’ve allowed them to be.”
Francis Ford Coppola
“He set up a way of working that was very experimental and felt very theatrical to me. I have a background in theatre, so I loved it; it was filled with improvisation. So long as we got the core of what the scene was about, he gave us a lot of freedom to make choices — which, in turn, obviously makes you feel like you have authorship [over] what you’re making.”
Megalopolis breaks the fourth wall at one point in the film, where an actor in the audience communicates with Driver, on screen in theatres. During the TIFF Q&A, when Coppola was asked why he chose to do that, he too referenced his theatre background.
“I was a theatre student and I have one foot in theatre and one foot in cinema. As we continue with movies even more, we are going to see live cinema. Movies being performed live… that’s where the future takes us. Theatre and films are more connected than we’ve allowed them to be,” said Coppola.
Driver sees a lot of Coppola in Caesar, the visionary. The actor also shares a few sentiments with his character. “I think maybe the sense of re-examining what’s conventional [that] I share with Francis, very much is Francis. A lot of the ideas or traits of that character is Francis: his optimism towards the future; his interest in helping the youth. Not that I don’t share [those traits], but he made a movie at his age about creating a utopia, not a dystopia, because he still — in spite of what seems to be a bleak future — believes in human genius.”
He continued: “I guess we’re not similar in that way, but he is still examining how to make a film and I think because of which, made something singular, which I always thought that’s what films were going to be, is trusting your audience that they can handle watching a movie where they’re shown and not told, and that it would be wild and challenging.”
“Even if it’s an abstract idea, sometimes it’s still the truth.”
Adam Driver
Driver, who made his feature film debut in Clint Eastwood’s biopic J. Edgar in 2011, has been moving from one high-profile project to the next, including his recent releases Baumbach’s Marriage Story, two Ridley Scott films The Last Duel and House of Gucci, and Michael Mann’s Ferrari.
Given that the actor has worked with several celebrated filmmakers, what makes Francis Ford Coppola Francis Ford Coppola? Driver enthusiastically shared that he gave him “one of the best shooting experiences.” He cites Megalopolis and Patterson as his two favourite shooting experiences ever.
“The thing I took from this one the most is just how it was made. And Francis, our first day of shooting, we were kind of shooting the scene where I was strapped to a board, and he was doing some practical effect. His direction for the group was [that] we weren’t being brave enough. It set the tone for the rest of the shoot. The minute you start getting an idea that you’re trying to impose on a scene, you’re closing yourself [off] to something that could be actually really abstract,” he said.
Driver shared that they played a lot of theatre games, something he also played in college, which would work its way into the scene.
“There’s this scene where they’re pulling an imaginary rope, and that came from an improv that we did that morning. Somehow, it made sense of what was going on between Natalie’s character and mine. So [Coppola] is like, ‘Let’s put it in.’ Even if it’s an abstract idea, sometimes it’s still the truth.”
It was definitely a reminder Driver needed, and one that he’ll carry into his future projects: Don’t get settled and do something that’s right, and then keep trying to repeat your version of what you think is right, because there are so many other options, he said.
“That’s what I always thought films are; that they’re challenging an audience.”
Adam Driver
He then pointed to the poster of the film where he is centred and said, “This image right here came out of an improv that was blocked as one way and then we came back after lunch, and he decided to switch it up. Then, we improvised for 15 minutes or something and then it happened to kind of mirror a Walter Gropius image that — maybe by osmosis — I remember, but I can’t say that for sure.”
It seemed like Driver relished the opportunity to play out a scene like this as he knows it’s a different way of making films, and one he’s excited to be a part of. When asked about this, he said, “That’s what I always thought films are; that they’re challenging an audience. The goal, hopefully, is to be a part of things that are pushing a medium forward, or singular, which is why I think there’s not a lot of film references for what this film is. That’s an exciting thing to be a part of.”
Megalopolis is in theatres Friday.
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