Director Quentin Tarantino has hit back at actress Rosanna Arquette after she criticised his use of the N-word in his films, accusing her of disrespecting him and suggesting her comments were motivated by the publicity they generated.
The two-time Oscar winner issued a heated response after Arquette described the repeated use of the racial slur in the 1994 crime film Pulp Fiction as ‘racist and creepy.’
In a statement to the Daily Mail, Tarantino appeared to reference the attention Arquette’s remarks had received in the press.
He wrote: ‘Dear Rosanna, I hope the publicity you’re getting from 132 different media outlets writing your name and printing your picture was worth disrespecting me and a film I remember quite clearly you were thrilled to be a part of?’
Arquette played Jody, the wife of drug dealer Lance, portrayed by Eric Stoltz, in the film widely regarded as one of Tarantino’s most influential works.
The director questioned why the actress was criticising the film more than three decades after its release.
‘Do you feel this way now? Very possibly,’ he wrote.
‘After I gave you a job, and you took the money, to trash it for what I suspect is very cynical reasons shows a decided lack of class, no less honor.’
Tarantino added that there should be a sense of loyalty between collaborators, referring to what he called an ‘esprit de corps’ among artistic colleagues.
‘It would appear the objective was accomplished,’ he concluded. ‘Congratulations — Q.’
Arquette made her remarks during an interview with The Sunday Times, where she described Pulp Fiction as ‘iconic’ and ‘a great film on a lot of levels’ while also criticising its repeated use of the racial slur, which appears around 20 times in the script.
‘Personally I am over the use of the N-word — I hate it,’ she said.
She added that Tarantino’s reputation as an ‘auteur’ should not give him a free pass to include the language in his films.
‘I cannot stand that he has been given a hall pass,’ she said. ‘It’s not art, it’s just racist and creepy.’
In the same interview, Arquette also discussed the film’s financial arrangements, claiming she did not receive a share of its profits.
‘Everybody made money except me,’ she said, adding that she was ‘the only person who didn’t get a back end’.
The news comes afte Tarantino randomly hit out at another actor, Paul Dano, calling him ‘weak.’
In a blistering criticism on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, the director dubbed Paul weak, uninteresting, and a ‘giant flaw’ in the 2007 epic period drama There Will Be Blood.
While explaining his list of favourite films, ranking Paul Anderson’s film as fifth, Quentin said: ‘There Will Be Blood would stand a better chance to be in number 1 or number 2 if it didn’t have a big giant flaw in it, and the flaw is Paul Dano.’
He also made his feelings clear about two more Hollywood heavyweights on the podcast.
‘I don’t care for Owen Wilson, I don’t care for Matthew Lillard,’ he continued, despite Wilson appearing in one of his favourite films on the list, Midnight In Paris.
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