Quentin Tarantino has described one of his past collaborators as the ‘weakest f****** actor’ in the film industry in a harsh critique.
From Pulp Fiction to Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood, Tarantino’s films are among the most celebrated in Hollywood.
Despite his success, the director also enjoys films outside of his own projects.
One such film is 2007’s There Will Be Blood, which Tarantino ranks as his fifth favorite movie of the 21st century.
However, he believes the film could have ranked higher if not for Paul Dano’s performance in the movie directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.
During a recent episode of The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, Tarantino commented: “There Will Be Blood would stand a better chance to be in number 1 or number 2 if it didn’t have a big giant flaw in it, and the flaw is Paul Dano.”
Tarantino praised Daniel Day-Lewis’ outstanding performance, which won him an Oscar, suggesting that Dano should have matched that level of excellence.
“Obviously, it’s supposed to be a two-hander, and it’s also so drastically obvious that it’s not a two-hander,” he elaborated.
The director continued his critique of Dano, calling him ‘weak sauce, man’ and indicating he perceives himself as ‘another terrific actor’.
“Austin Butler would have been wonderful in that role. [Dano] just such a weak, weak, uninteresting guy,” Tarantino continued his piercing remarks.
He further criticized Dano as ‘the weakest male actor in SAG’, and harshly referred to him as the ‘limpest d***’ in the world.
“I’m not saying he’s giving a terrible performance. I’m saying he’s giving a non-entity performance,” the director, now 62, later clarified.
When asked if he has enjoyed any of Dano’s works, the Pulp Fiction creator replied: “I don’t care for him. I don’t care for him, I don’t care for Owen Wilson, and I don’t care for Matthew Lillard.”
Tarantino’s remarks stirred significant backlash online as they circulated following the podcast’s release.
One individual wrote on X: “Listen, I think Tarantino is the GOAT when it comes to character development and storytelling, nobody touches him there. But he’s way off on this one. Dano absolutely crushed that role.”
Another added: “This might be the dumbest thing Tarantino has ever said.”
UNILAD has reached out to Tarantino and Dano’s representatives for comment.