Quentin Tarantino is a truly prolific and visionary filmmaker, and one who isn’t shy about sharing his hot takes. Tarantino’s movies are legendary, as is his passion for the film industry as a whole. This love for film also means he’s got some hot takes, including criticizing Paul Dano in There Will Be Blood and claiming The Hunger Games was a rip-off of a Japanese movie. And now the writer of the first movie and a Hunger Games star have both responded to the chatter.
The Pulp Fiction director is known for not holding back his opinions on the film industry. Whether Tarantino is complaining about movies going to streaming or stopping Hugh Grant to praise his rom-coms. But recently, he took aim at both There Will Be Blood and The Hunger Games, leading to a viral back-and-forth. Let’s break it all down.
What Tarantino Said About Hunger Games And There Will Be Blood.
Tarantino has gone viral a number of times recently thanks to his unfiltered take on those two movies. While There Will Be Blood was a big success, Tarantino had a big note. Namely his disatisfaction with the performance of Paul Dano. While appearing on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, he made some bold comments about the 41 year-old actor’s talents, saying:
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. . . . and the flaw is 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 fucking actor in SAG.
Ouch. Tarantino seemingly loathes Dano has a performer, which is a pretty wild take. After all, the actor has had quite the successful career, including roles in projects like Swiss Army Man, The Fablemans, Little Miss Sunshine, 12 Years a Slave, and recently playing The Riddler in The Batman (which is streaming with a HBO Max subscription).
But Paul Dano wasn’t Quentin Tarantino’s only target on that podcast. He also took a shot at author Suzanne Collins, because he thinks The Hunger Games is a ripoff of the Japanese movie Battle Royale. In his words:
I do not understand how the Japanese writer didn’t sue Suzanne Collins for every fucking thing she owns. They just ripped off the fucking book! Stupid book critics are not going to go watch a Japanese movie called ‘Battle Royale,’ so the stupid book critics never called her out on it. They talked about how it was the most original thing they’d ever fucking read. As soon as the film critics saw the film they said, ‘What the fuck! This is just Battle Royale except PG!’
He certainly didn’t mince his words, and this complaint is one that Quentin Tarantino has made a number of times throughout the years. But this time it went viral, leading fans and even one member of the Hunger Games cast to respond.
How Josh Hutcherson And Mattson Tomlin Responded
Tarantino’s viral comments have inspired some folks to respond to his claims. After the legendary filmmaker criticized Paul Dano’s acting ability, The Batman writer Mattson Tomlin took to Twitter to defend the Riddler actor. He posted:
I am really pleased to see so many people cheer on Paul Dano this week. Not only is he a terrific actor, but he’s an astonishing director who exudes control and tremendous empathy. Check out WILDLIFE if you haven’t seen it.
Clearly, he doesn’t agree with Tarantino’s assessment of the actor’s talents. Paul Dano’s movie resume does speak for itself, and he even got behind the camera as the director and writer of 2018’s Wildlife. Clearly, the Batman writer saw Tarantino’s comments and felt moved to speak out on the actor’s behalf.
Josh Hutcherson was asked by Variety about the filmmaker’s comments about The Hunger Games movies, and he defended author Suzanne Collins. In his words:
There are similar themes, for sure. But, you know, everyone borrows from everyone.
Fair point. He’s not claiming that Collins wasn’t inspired by Battle Royale when crafting the world of Panem, but Hutcherson maintains that this is pretty standard in the industry. It’s almost impossible to craft a wholly original concept, and plenty of people take inspiration from previous movies, TV shows, and books.
Josh Hutcherson’s upcoming horror movie Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 is in theaters on December 5th as part of the 2025 movie release list. Paul Dano has a number of upcoming projects coming down the line, while fans wait for news about Quentin Tarantino’s tenth (and final) movie.