Tarantino Says He Felt He Let Brad Pitt Down Over the Cliff Booth Sequel
Quentin Tarantino says he feels he let Brad Pitt down by not directing the sequel to Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. He told Empire that Pitt was the person he felt most let down, according to Variety, which reported the remarks this week.
The film is The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth. Tarantino wrote the script, which Netflix is releasing. He did not direct it. David Fincher stepped in to take the director's chair after Tarantino stepped away from the job.
Fincher has worked with Pitt before. He directed him in Seven, Fight Club and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. Pitt won the best supporting actor Oscar for playing Cliff Booth, a stunt man, in the 2019 film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.
The new story is set in a different decade. The 2019 film takes place in 1969. The sequel jumps forward to 1977, where Booth works as a studio fixer, the person a film studio calls when a problem needs solving quietly. Netflix is also bringing the film to IMAX cinemas on November 25, according to Variety.
Tarantino's comments came in an exclusive interview that Empire published under the title "Tarantino x Fincher: The Cliff Booth Interview." In it, he also said the sequel would not be his 10th and final film as a director. He has said he plans to retire after ten films, so the remark places this project outside that count.
Pitt's side of the story has also surfaced. JoBlo reported that Pitt was not ready to say goodbye to Cliff Booth. The same report said Pitt asked Tarantino for permission to bring the Cliff Booth script to Fincher.
That permission step is the part that changes the story. Tarantino wrote the script, but the decision to hand it to a new director sat with the people who had the rights to the character and the project. Pitt's request put Fincher in the conversation, and Tarantino's later remarks suggest he was comfortable with that outcome, even as he says he regrets not being the one to direct it.
For fans of the 2019 film, the sequel offers a new era for the character and a new director at the helm. The IMAX date gives audiences a clear point on the calendar to watch for.
