Legendary filmmaker Quentin Tarantino has ignited a firestorm of controversy after bluntly naming the actors he considers to be among the worst in Hollywood during a candid podcast appearance this week.
Tarantino's Scathing Actor Assessments
While appearing on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, the 62-year-old director of Pulp Fiction did not hold back. He singled out Paul Dano's performance in the acclaimed 2007 period drama There Will Be Blood as a major flaw in the film.
Tarantino argued that the movie, which stars Daniel Day-Lewis, would be a top contender for the best of the century if not for Dano's involvement. He described Dano's portrayal of twins Paul and Eli Sunday as 'weak sauce' and labelled the actor himself as 'weak and uninteresting.'
'It's supposed to be a two-hander, but it's drastically obvious that it's not a two-hander,' Tarantino stated. He suggested that Austin Butler, who starred in his 2019 film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, would have been 'wonderful' in the role instead.
A Hit List with Surprising Entries
Dano was not the only actor in the director's crosshairs. Tarantino also named two other prominent figures, stating plainly: 'I don't care for Owen Wilson, I don't care for Matthew Lillard.'
The criticism of Wilson is particularly notable given that the actor stars in Woody Allen's Midnight in Paris, a film that features on Tarantino's own list of the top ten movies of the 21st century.
His harsh comments have provoked significant backlash online, with fans and commentators branding his remarks as 'classless' and an 'insane take.' One Reddit user speculated, 'There must be some weird behind-the-scenes grudge here,' while another quipped that Tarantino himself is 'the weakest actor I've ever seen.'
Revealing His Top Films of the Century
Amidst the actor critiques, Tarantino also used the podcast to unveil his personal selection for the best movies released since the year 2000. Topping his list was Ridley Scott's intense 2001 war film, Black Hawk Down.
He praised the film, based on the 1993 Battle of Mogadishu, as a 'masterwork' and the only movie that achieves the sense of purpose and visual effect of Apocalypse Now. 'The feat of direction is beyond extraordinary,' Tarantino said, noting how the film's relentless intensity held him for its entire runtime.
His top ten list presented several surprises:
- Black Hawk Down (2001) - Ridley Scott
- Toy Story 3 (2010) - Lee Unkrich
- Lost in Translation (2003) - Sofia Coppola
- Dunkirk (2017) - Christopher Nolan
- There Will Be Blood (2007) - Paul Thomas Anderson
- Zodiac (2007) - David Fincher
- Unstoppable (2010) - Tony Scott
- Mad Max: Fury Road (2015) - George Miller
- Shaun of the Dead (2004) - Edgar Wright
- Midnight in Paris (2011) - Woody Allen
He called the animated Toy Story 3 an 'almost perfect movie,' emotionally devastated by its final moments. The list notably includes the very film, There Will Be Blood, which he criticised for Dano's performance, placing it at number five.
Tarantino's unfiltered opinions have once again placed him at the centre of Hollywood discourse, blending sharp criticism with earnest admiration for the cinematic works he champions.
