People were stunned, and still are, about Quentin Tarantino giving away his ‘Cliff Booth’ script for David Fincher to direct. There have been multiple theories as to why he decided to do that, QT has finally broken his silence.
Speaking on The Church of Tarantino podcast, the director admitted that while he initially planned to direct ‘Cliff Booth’ himself, he ultimately lost interest.
I love this script, but I’m still walking down the same ground I’ve already walked. It just kind of unenthused me … This last movie, I’ve got to not know what I’m doing again. I’ve got to be in uncharted territory.
In short, Tarantino decided he didn’t want his supposed “final film” to feel like an extension of something he’d already done. Enter Fincher, who, as Tarantino put it, is the right man for the job.
I think me and David Fincher are the two best directors. So the idea that David Fincher actually wants to adapt my work, to me, shows a level of seriousness towards my work that I think needs to be taken into account.
When asked if the film, produced by Netflix, will even get theatrically released, Tarantino wasn’t sure, but he wouldn’t hold a grudge against them if they sent it straight to streaming.
Well, they might. It’s not their business model, so I don’t hold it against the company for not following what’s not their business model. You can [decry] that it’s not their business model, but it is just what it is. I wouldn’t be surprised if they came out with a two-week release of it, at least limited, to some degree. And then I think, at least as far as the big cities are concerned, they’ll probably have screenings because they’re probably going to want it to do good at the Oscars. So they’ll be screenings for it around town and everything.
Tarantino goes on to call the project “the biggest budget movie I’ve ever done by $100 million,” noting that its budget is likely $200 million, and that “the box office doesn’t matter.”
I mean, it doesn’t matter f— all. Not f— all, all right? They don’t care. They don’t care. It’s like gambling with the casino’s money. I mean, you know, it’s that Sword of Damocles that I have existed under, that I have lived under my entire career, just doesn’t exist.
Tarantino praised Fincher for stepping in, and noted that, as a producer, he’ll still have a hand in the film during production.
I’m moving back and forth between here and Israel, so I won’t be on the set every day and everything. But, yeah, I’ll be around if they need me to do something, you know, I will.
‘Cliff Booth’ has an ensemble that includes Pitt, Carla Gugino, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Elizabeth Debicki, Scott Caan, Corey Fogelmanis and Karren Karagulian. It’s most likely premiering sometime in 2026.