Cruise and his partners at the revamped United Artists studio are in talks to acquire Coppola's first film since The Rainmaker in 1997.
Coppola produced and directed Youth Without Youth after adapting the story from a 1976 novel by religious historian Mircea Eliade.
The film stars Tim Roth and Bruno Ganz and features The Rainmaker star Matt Damon.
The last time Coppola and Cruise worked together was when the former directed the latter in The Outsiders.