Safe to say Quentin Tarantino isn’t a fan of actor Paul Dano.
During an appearance on “The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast,” the legendary filmmaker mentioned that Paul Thomas Anderson’s award-winning 2007 film, “There Will Be Blood,” was his fifth-favorite movie of the 21st century.
Nothing controversial about that. It was nominated for eight Academy Awards and appears on numerous top 10 lists. But, according to Tarantino, it would have ranked first or second were it not for “a big giant flaw in it, and the flaw is Paul Dano.”
Dano, who was relatively unknown when the Daniel Day-Lewis-led film was released, plays dual roles in the movie as identical twins Eli and Paul Sunday.
Day-Lewis won the Oscar for Best Actor for his portrayal of ruthless oil prospector Daniel Plainview, but Tarantino apparently was less than thrilled with his co-star.v
“He is weak sauce, man,” Tarantino said of Dano. “He’s a weak sister.”
Tarantino is without a doubt one of the best directors of his generation, having directed films like “Kill Bill,” “Pulp Fiction,” “Reservoir Dogs” and “Inglourious Basterds,” among others, but he is often mired in controversy due to his bold and sometimes off-kilter disposition,
He suggested “Elvis” star Austin Butler, who was just 16 years old when “There Will Be Blood” was released, would have been” wonderful” in the role before adding Tarantino that Dano is “just such a weak, weak, uninteresting guy.”
Dano’s performance in the film has received critical acclaim, especially because he reportedly only had a couple days to plan for the dual role, which wasn’t the initial plan.
He is generally considered a top-tier actor for his intense and psychologically layered portrayal of emotionally complex characters and has received praise for films like “Little Miss Sunshine,” “The Fabelmans” and “The Batman.”
