Quentin Tarantino has been hyping the next film (his tenth) will be his final entry into the world of theatrical feature film directing as he’s mused about writing more books and making series/miniseries such as “Bounty Law” in his upcoming phase of “retirement.” While we know some of the plot beats and that the title is “The Movie Critic,” we’re still mostly in the dark concerning the all-important element, the film’s casting.

The main lead of the film is said to be a movie critic working in Los Angeles (Tarantino just got approved for a $20 million California tax credit for shooting in the state) for a “porno rag” in 1977 (the year “Star Wars” was released) and is loosely based on a real person (assumed to be someone that Tarantino is familiar with). Tarantino has compared the lead character to that of the Robert De Niro character Travis Bickle from the classic NYC thriller “Taxi Driver” that hailed from director Martin Scorsese and legendary screenwriter Paul Schrader. Taking place in Los Angeles in the late 70’s will certainly give the film a different feel from other things that Tarantino has made, even “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood.”

There is a new rumor that suggests at least one actor might be or have been in the mix for that lead role. According to Daniel Richtman via Patreon, he claims that actor Paul Walter Hauser had been offered the unnamed lead role in the pic before the strikes.

Hauser has been gathering steam with standout roles in projects like Spike Lee’s “BlakKklansman” and “Da 5 Bloods,” “I, Tonya,” Disney’s “Cruella,” Clint Eastwood’s “Richard Jewell,” and most recently landing an Emmy nomination for his prison drama “Black Bird” that he co-stars alongside Taron Egerton.

While it’s certainly a name that feels like a good fit for Tarantino, it’s still just a rumor at this point. As with all unsupported rumors that aren’t being echoed by industry trade outlets, take it with a grain of salt. It’s also worth mentioning that Daniel is quick to point out this information was brewing ahead of the Hollywood strikes which is an indicator this could change.

Tarantino isn’t as out of the public eye as he used to be to comment on these sorts of things and does interviews on a regular basis alongside a podcast. So, I would assume he could debunk or support this rumbling if it ends up being brought to his attention. Previously, Tarantino gave clarifying statements when the rumor of the lead character was going to be based on Pauline Kael, a noted female movie critic from the New York Times. This was quickly dismissed as inaccurate information that was circulating. It’s not like mistakes haven’t already been made when covering this upcoming project.

Despite previous working relationships with both Sony Pictures and Netflix, “The Movie Critic” is without an official studio/distribution partner which is expected to change in the very near future as it sounds like Tarantino has figured out financing for the film if he’s applying for tax credits ahead of the shoot, likely sometime in 2024 given the strikes. We have assumed since the film was first announced that longtime cinematographer Robert Richardson would reunite with the filmmaker after first working with him on the two “Kill Bill” installments and “The Movie Critic” would make this their 7th film together.

SOURCE: DANIEL RICHTMAN