George Clooney Calls Out Quentin Tarantino Over Actor Criticism

George Clooney has made it clear he’s not impressed with Quentin Tarantino’s recent digs at fellow actors Paul Dano, Owen Wilson, and Matthew Lillard. The director of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood didn’t hold back during a chat on the Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, where he rattled off his top films of the century and took a swipe at Dano’s performance in There Will Be Blood, as well as dismissing Wilson and Lillard altogether.

Tarantino, while discussing Paul Thomas Anderson’s acclaimed film, said Dano’s casting was a misstep, claiming the actor was the weak link. He went on to say,

‘There Will Be Blood would stand a good chance at being 1 or 2 if it didn’t have a big, giant flaw in it... Paul Dano. 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 is the weak sister. Austin Butler would have been wonderful in that role. He’s just such a weak, weak, uninteresting guy. The weakest f****** actor in [the Screen Actors Guild].’

George Clooney Defends His Mates

Clooney, who once starred alongside Tarantino in From Dusk till Dawn, didn’t let those comments slide. While accepting the Best Actor award at AARP’s Movies for Grownups Awards for his role in Jay Kelly, Clooney made a point of praising the actors Tarantino had criticised. He said he’d be more than happy to work with Dano, Wilson, and Lillard, calling it an honour.

He told the crowd,

‘By the way, Paul Dano and Owen Wilson and Matthew Lillard, I would be honoured to work with those actors. Honoured.’

Clooney went on to highlight the importance of kindness in the business, saying Jay Kelly was made by people who genuinely care about actors. He added,

‘I have a great affinity [for them], and I don’t enjoy watching people be cruel. We are living in a time of cruelty. We don’t need to be adding to it.’

Matthew Lillard Responds to Tarantino’s Remarks

Matthew Lillard, best known for his role in Scream, didn’t stay quiet after hearing Tarantino’s comments. Speaking at GalaxyCon in Columbus, Ohio, Lillard admitted the criticism stung, even if he tried to brush it off. He told fans,

‘Quentin Tarantino this week said he didn’t like me as an actor. Eh, whatever. Who gives a s***. It hurts your feelings. It f****** sucks. And you wouldn’t say that to Tom Cruise. You wouldn’t say that to somebody who’s a top-line actor in Hollywood. I’m very popular in this room. I’m not very popular in Hollywood. Two totally different microcosms, right? And so, you know, it’s humbling, and it hurts.’

Tarantino’s Other Targets

Tarantino didn’t stop at actors. On the same podcast, he took a swipe at the Hunger Games franchise, accusing author Suzanne Collins of lifting the concept from Koushun Takami’s Japanese novel Battle Royale. He said,

‘I do not understand how the Japanese writer didn’t sue Suzanne Collins for every f****** thing she owns. They just ripped off the f****** book. Stupid book critics are not going to go watch a Japanese movie called Battle Royale, so the stupid book critics never called her on it. They talked about how it was the most original f****** thing they’d ever read. As soon as the film critics saw the film, they said, “What the f***? This is just Battle Royale except PG!”’