Quentin Tarantino slams "weakest male actor in SAG" for spoiling what he argues could have been best film of the century
The American film maker said one of There Will Be Blood's lead actors was the film's "giant flaw".
Quentin Tarantino has blamed "the weakest male actor in the SAG" for ruining what he argues could have been the best film of the 21st century.
Speaking on the Bret Easton Ellis podcast this week, the American filmmaker and actor discussed his top 20 films of the 21st century. In first place he listed Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down, with Toy Story 3 coming in second and Lost in Translation a close third.
Notably, in fifth place, Tarantino listed There Will Be Blood, a film he claimed was ruined by one of it's lead actors.
"There Will Be Blood would stand a good chance at being number 1 or 2 if it didn’t have a big, giant flaw in it…and the flaw is Paul Dano," Tarantino said.
"Obviously, it’s supposed to be a two-hander, but it’s also drastically obvious that it’s not a two-hander. [Dano] is weak sauce, man. He’s a weak sister."
Dano was only 23 years old when he starred in the 2007 Paul Thomas Anderson blockbuster, playing both roles of twins Paul and Eli Sunday. He was originally only cast as Paul but took over both the twin roles two weeks after filming began when Kel O’Neill, who was playing Eli, was fired because he "wasn’t the right fit".
Tarantino described Dano as a "weak, weak, uninteresting guy" and branded him "the weakest male actor in the SAG", suggesting Austin Butler, who was only 16 at the time, would have been better for the role.
When podcast host Ellis asked if Tarantino had ever enjoyed Dano in any project, he 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.
"I’m not saying [Dano]’s giving a terrible performance. I’m saying he’s giving a non-entity performance."
Paul Dano began acting when he was just 12 years old, gaining notoriety for the role of Dwayne in Little Miss Sunshine, a colour-blind aspiring pilot who has taken a vow of silence as a devoted follower of Friedrich Nietzsche. More recently he starred in Robert Pattinson's The Batman as The Riddler and will reprise the role in the sequel, due for release in 2027.
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Authors
Phoebe Kowhai Barnes is a Freelance Writer who covers pop culture and entertainment programmes for the Radio Times. She previously worked as the Senior Assistant Editor at The Tab where she managed its local department. She obtained a BA (Hons) in English Literature from University of Nottingham.
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