Robert Richardson, the three-time Oscar-winning cinematographer affectionately nicknamed “Big Bad Bob” by Brad Pitt, spent the July 4 weekend at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival
In a wonderful interview with Deadline, Richardson revisits his legendary partnership with director Oliver Stone, from “The Doors” “JFK” to “Natural Born Killers” which proved to be their most difficult collaboration. They reunited once more for “U Turn” before ultimately going their separate ways.
He also offers fresh insight into his iconic collaboration with Quentin Tarantino.
Richardson says nobody—including himself—knows what Tarantino’s 10th and supposedly final film will be. Rather, he revealed that Tarantino is focused on finishing his stage play before returning to filmmaking, citing a potential summer 2027 shoot as a possibility. Beyond that, Richardson said the director has kept the project entirely under wraps. “Nobody knows what he’s going to do,” he said, adding that whatever Tarantino makes next, “he won’t be walking down the same path he’s currently walking.”
Richardson also confirmed he had originally been lined up to shoot Tarantino’s abandoned project “The Movie Critic.” He had already committed to another film, “Michael,” directed by Antoine Fuqua, when Tarantino personally called asking him to leave because “The Movie Critic” was intended to be his final movie. Fuqua immediately released Richardson from his commitment, but after pre-production had begun Tarantino abandoned the screenplay, telling his longtime cinematographer he wanted to write an entirely different film. That replacement project ultimately also fell apart, leaving Tarantino’s final feature once again a mystery.
Looking ahead, Richardson says he recently completed photography on “Madden,” directed by David O. Russell. While praising Russell as “seriously brilliant,” he also describes him as “highly unpredictable.” Richardson admits he remains uncertain about his own cinematography on the film because the production moved at an exceptionally fast pace and he has yet to see a finished cut.
Looking back at “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” Richardson believes audiences should expect to see an extended edition eventually. He confirms the vast amount of material shot for the film, he said it would be surprising if Tarantino never revisited it, particularly after David Fincher’s upcoming continuation of the story. “You’d be a fool not to think there’ll be something that’s longer,” Richardson said.