Francis Ford Coppola has spoken out after being hospitalised in Rome for what his representative described as a scheduled medical procedure. The 86-year-old director of The Godfather and Apocalypse Now underwent the procedure with Dr Andrea Natale, his doctor of over 30 years, and is said to be recovering well.
In an Instagram post, Coppola reassured fans, writing: “Da Dada (what my kids call me) is fine, taking an opportunity while in Rome to do the update of my 30-year-old afib procedure with its inventor, a great Italian doctor — Dr Andrea Natale! I am well!” His representative disputed earlier Italian media reports that he had suffered a mild cardiac arrhythmia, stating that there was no emergency and that he went to the hospital by car.
Coppola was admitted to Policlinico Tor Vergata on Tuesday morning. The Oscar winner is a frequent visitor to Italy, having recently attended the Magna Graecia film festival in Calabria to present his latest film, Megalopolis. He also spent time scouting locations for a new production due to begin filming in the autumn.
Speaking at the film festival, Coppola reflected on his career and life philosophy, saying: “Young people say the world is a disaster, but I reply that there is no problem man can’t solve.” He added that he has no regrets about his passion project Megalopolis, a $120m sci-fi epic starring Adam Driver, despite mixed reviews.
Coppola, whose wife Eleanor died last year, said: “There are many people, when they die, they say: ‘Oh, I wish I had done this, I wish I had done that’. But when I die, I’m going to say: ‘I’ve got to do this and I’ve got to see my daughter win an Oscar and I’ve got to make wine and I’ve got to make every movie I wanted to make.’”
