Quentin Tarantino Rumored To Be Eyeing Cate Blanchett as the Lead of ‘The Movie Critic’
New details may have surfaced on the next (and possibly last) film from Quentin Tarantino, The Movie Critic.
The project was first reported by The Hollywood Reporter‘s Borys Kit, who said that the script was done and that the Oscar-winning writer, who will also be directing, would be shopping it around the studios within days. The film reportedly revolves around a female film critic in the 1970s, and could be inspired by legendary movie critic Pauline Kael. Rumors of Margot Robbie possibly playing the character have been circling for a couple of weeks, following their short-lived collaboration in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, but it looks like Tarantino may have another actress in mind.
According to Jeff Sneider on the most recent episode of The Hot Mic With Jeff and John, Cate Blanchett would be Tarantino’s pick to lead the film, although he did admit this was on thin ice. We are taking it as a rumor for now, but Sneider had a few more details for us. Apparently, the script is highly critical of the state Hollywood is in right now, as one could expect from such a fan of the industry as Quentin Tarantino. The lead and title role would also be similar to Lydia Tár, Blanchett’s part in last year’s Tár, which earned her an Oscar nomination; this might be why she didn’t say yes immediately. Sneider also confirmed that this project is indeed different from the eight-episode miniseries he said last year he’d be shooting in 2023. (Whatever happened with that, we don’t know yet.)
Little else is known at the moment, but it will be interesting to see how this story develops. Tarantino is not exactly known for sparing any expenses, and with Hollywood reportedly passing on a top-tier package from Adam McKay, which has enlisted some of the industry’s biggest acting names, due to financing concerns, what will they think of a 1970s-set film about a movie critic? Tarantino is a decent box office draw, however (The Hateful Eight grossed $161M on a $44M budget, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood made $377M on a $90M budget), and the chance of working with the legendary writer/director one last time will probably have studios throwing blank checks at him. Or will they? Hollywood is in a very strange place at the moment as they try to figure out what the newer generations want while sorting out their financial struggles amid inflation and a vastly different post-2019 box office landscape.
Stay tuned for more news on The Movie Critic, which will surely cause some internal wars in Hollywood, with agencies throwing their best names in the ring and actors possibly even accepting pay cuts on their standard fees.
Miguel Fernández is a Spanish student that has movies as his second passion in life. His favorite movie of all time is The Lord of the Rings, but he is also a huge Star Wars fan. However, fantasy movies are not his only cup of tea, as authors like Scorsese, Fincher, Kubrick or Hitchcock have been an obsession for him since he started to understand the language of filmmaking. He is that guy who will watch a black and white movie, just because it is in black and white.
