'I Was Incredibly Grateful That the World Spoke Up for Me So I Didn't Have To' — Paul Dano Breaks Silence After Quentin Tarantino Insult

There Will Be Blood and The Batman histrion Paul Dano has expressed his gratitude for the enactment helium received aft Quentin Tarantino insulted him connected a podcast.

Tarantino, who became a household sanction for penning and directing the likes of Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, appeared connected The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast past twelvemonth to uncover his 20 favourite films of the 21st century. He picked Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down astatine fig one, but his comments astir his fig 5 pick, There Will Be Blood, acceptable the net connected fire. Tarantino said There Will Be Blood mightiness person been his apical prime if it weren’t for Paul Dano, who helium described arsenic the film’s “giant flaw.” Dano was nominated for the BAFTA for Best Supporting Actor for playing identical twins Paul and Eli Sunday successful Paul Thomas Anderson's 2007 play drama.

Here’s Tarantino’s punctuation successful full:

“Daniel Day-Lewis. The old-style craftsmanship prime to the film. It had an aged Hollywood craftsmanship without trying to beryllium similar that. It was the lone movie he’s ever done, and I brought it up to him, that doesn’t person a acceptable piece. The occurrence is the closest to a acceptable piece. This was astir dealing with the narrative, dealing with the story, and helium did it f***ing amazingly. There Will Be Blood would basal a bully accidental astatine being fig 1 oregon fig 2 if it didn’t person a big, elephantine flaw successful it … and the flaw is Paul Dano. Obviously, it’s expected to beryllium a two-hander, but it’s besides drastically evident that it’s not a two-hander. [Dano] is anemic sauce, man. He is the anemic sister. Austin Butler would person been fantastic successful that role. He’s conscionable specified a weak, weak, uninteresting guy. The weakest f***ing histrion successful SAG [laughs].”

Bret Easton Ellis, who wrote 1991 caller American Psycho, suggested Dano faced an intolerable task keeping up with Daniel Day-Lewis' Oscar-winning performance. "Daniel Day-Lewis besides makes it intolerable to marque it a two-hander due to the fact that determination are aspects of that show that are truthful gargantuan," helium offered.

Tarantino countered: "So you enactment him with the weakest antheral histrion successful SAG? The limpest dick successful the world?" Later, helium clarified his position, insisting: "I'm not saying he's giving a unspeakable performance. I'm saying he's giving a non-entity performance." But Tarantino’s feelings connected Dano were made clear: "I don't attraction for him," helium said. "I don't attraction for him, I don't attraction for Owen Wilson, and I don't attraction for Matthew Lillard."

This week, Variety asked Dano astir Tarantino’s comments astatine a 20th day screening of Little Miss Sunshine astatine the Sundance Film Festival. “That was truly nice,” Dano said of the enactment helium received. “I was besides incredibly grateful that the satellite spoke up for maine truthful I didn’t person to.”

Variety reported that Little Miss Sunshine directors Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris besides commented, with Dayton calling Tarantino’s remarks an “embarrassment.” He added: “I tin lone deliberation that his rawness of his show made Tarantino uncomfortable. He couldn’t beryllium easy filed.”

After Tarantino’s comments deed the internet, fans moved to support Dano’s show successful There Will Be Blood, pointing retired the discourse surrounding his role. Dano, who was lone 23 years aged erstwhile helium was formed successful the film, was primitively lone acceptable to play the member Paul, but took implicit some the duplicate roles 2 weeks aft filming began erstwhile the histrion primitively formed arsenic Eli, Kel O’Neill, was fired due to the fact that Paul Thomas Anderson decided helium “wasn’t the close fit.”

After There Will Be Blood came out, Dano spoke astir the trouble helium faced adding this other relation with precise small clip to prepare. "On There Will Be Blood I was formed astatine the past minute," helium said successful an interrogation with Indiewire. "I had 3 1/2 to 4 days to get acceptable for the archetypal day. That was conscionable guts and instinct, not a batch of preparation." Dano went connected to person captious acclaim for his roles successful 12 Years a Slave and Prisoners, and won plaudits for his portrayal of supervillain Riddler successful 2022’s The Batman.

Meanwhile, Matthew Lillard besides commented connected his experience, having been the taxable of Tarantino’s disapproval alongside Dano. The Scream and Five Nights astatine Freddy's prima told Entertainment Weekly that receiving tributes from his peers connected societal media “was similar surviving done your ain wake.”

He continued: “All those R.I.P. emails oregon tweets and Instagram posts and TikToks, each of the things we spot aft idiosyncratic passes are truthful sweet. And the world is I conscionable got to unrecorded done each of it firsthand — live and kicking! I can't ideate a much beauteous absorption to what happened.”

Last month, Lillard admitted "it f***ing sucks" to beryllium connected the receiving extremity of an insult from Tarantino. Lillard reacted to the drive-by insult astatine GalaxyCon successful Columbus, Ohio, successful December, and addressed the assemblage of fans by bringing Tarantino’s insult up.

"Quentin Tarantino this week said helium didn't similar maine arsenic an actor," Lillard said. "Eh, whatever. Who gives a s**t?"

The outspoken Quentin Tarantino has travel nether occurrence for insulting a fig of actors. Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images for Epic Games.

Lillard went connected to uncover that Tarantino’s words had affected him. "The constituent is, is that, it hurts your feelings. It f***ing sucks. And helium wouldn't accidental that to Tom Cruise. He wouldn't accidental that to idiosyncratic who's a top-line histrion successful Hollywood. I'm precise fashionable successful this room. I americium not precise fashionable successful Hollywood. Two wholly antithetic microcosms, right? And so, you know, it's humbling, and it hurts."

At that point, idiosyncratic from the assemblage shouted retired “we emotion you!” which sparked cheers from the audience.

Tarantino, meanwhile, is coming disconnected the backmost of a Kill Bill collaboration with Fortnite. He directed and wrote The Lost Chapter: Yuki's Revenge, an anime adaptation of a chopped country from Kill Bill that premiered successful the conflict royale.

Photo by Arturo Holmes/Getty Images.

Wesley is Director, News astatine IGN. Find him connected Twitter astatine @wyp100. You tin scope Wesley astatine [email protected] oregon confidentially astatine [email protected].