Yeah, we’re talking about Quentin Tarantino and feet again.
Tarantino, whose Once Upon a Time in Hollywood bagged a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars back in 2020, has revealed his top 10 films of the century.
Coming in at No. 5 on the filmmaker’s list is Paul Thomas Anderson’s modern classic There Will Be Blood, led by widely acclaimed performances from Daniel Day-Lewis and Paul Dano.
The latter, of course, has no shortage of also-excellent titles in his own catalog, including, but not limited to, There Will Be Blood.
While clearly a fan of the film, Tarantino, whose Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is set for a follow-up helmed by David Fincher, was not particularly fond of Dano’s performance as twins Paul and Eli Sunday.
The filmmaker spoke about his disdain for Dano with Bret Easton Ellis on a recently released episode of the author’s podcast.
“There Will Be Blood would stand a better chance to be in No. 1 or No. 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, and it’s also so drastically obvious that it’s not a two-hander.”
Tarantino went on to describe Dano as “weak sauce,” the “weakest male actor in SAG,” and “the limpest dick in the world.” He also argued that Dune alum Austin Butler would have been a better fit for the film.
“I’m not saying he’s giving a terrible performance,” he told Ellis. “I’m saying he’s giving a non-entity performance. I don’t care for him. I don’t care for Owen Wilson. I don’t care for Matthew Lillard.”
It's not the first time Tarantino has shared less-than-enthusiastic takes on Dano’s performance in PTA’s opus. In response to his latest remarks, questions have arisen about whether he and Dano may have some sort of feud.
There are no official comments on any such feud, but fans on social media have used this opportunity to jokingly present theories, including some involving feet.
As longtime Tarantino fans are aware, talk has circulated throughout his career over a perceived fondness for feet in his films, with Tarantino himself previously saying he doesn’t take such chatter “seriously.”
The topic grabbed attention again this year thanks to a joke from Stranger Things actress Maya Hawke, whose mother is Uma Thurman, star of Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill.
“Keep your shoes on,” Maya, also the daughter of Ethan Hawke, joked when Good Hang host Amy Poehler asked if Thurman had any advice for her prior to starting production on Hollywood.
But the mystery of why, exactly, Tarantino opted to go public with his “weak sauce” criticism of Dano will sustain for now.