Well, this took everyone by surprise. Just as Quentin Tarantino was gearing up to shoot “The Movie Critic,” his tenth, and final, film this fall, Deadline is revealing that Tarantino has dropped the film completely. He simply changed his mind.
Tarantino was going to team up with Brad Pitt, and rumors had Tom Cruise joining the fray as well. In fact, THR is now reporting that Pitt was going to portray Cliff Booth in “The Movie Critic”, the character he played in 2019’s “Once Upon A Time in Hollywood.”
Word is that Tarantino rewrote the script, had a new draft and then, quite simply, had a change of heart. So, we might never really know what this film was actually about.
Of course, this isn’t the first time that Tarantino has changed his mind about what would be his next project — he famously shelved “The Hateful Eight” in 2014 when the script leaked online. Of course, he finally ended up making that film, which was then released in 2015, but don’t expect the same thing to happen with “The Movie Critic.” Tarantino is just not happy with the way the script has turned out.
Is Tarantino starting to feel the pressure of the 10-film limit he’s put upon himself?
Tarantino has been insisting, for a few years now, that he plans to quit making movies after his 10th feature. This whole notion of retiring after ten movies comes from his theory that a director’s quality of work only worsens as they age. Tarantino wants his filmography to be perfect or, as he puts it, “without a misfire.”
Memo to Quentin: you’re allowed to direct more than 10 movies. This theory, idea, or whatever you want to call, that you have set yourself up with is creatively limiting and can definitely drive one absolutely crazy.
Following “Air,” this is Affleck’s latest stint behind the camera. He has cast himself in the lead role, alongside Kerry Washington, Steven Yeun, and Gillian Anderson (“The X-Files”).