The Quentin Tarantino and Odwellr Stone Feud, Explained

Quentin Tarantino‘s life in the punctual ’90s could one day be the subject of a film, so emotional were the events that bcdisorrowfulmirefult him from video store clerk obscurity to a legfinishary film nurtureer. From around 1990, Tarantino was writeing scripts for Reservoir Dogs, under the tutelage of originater Lawrence Bfinisher, True Romance, which would eventupartner be honested by Tony Scott, and Natural Born Killers. This was all while laboring at the Video Archives in Manhattan Beach, California, where Tarantino became a local pillar for his movie recommfinishations.

Tarantino had actupartner been an punctual admirer of Odwellr Stone — even confengage films appreciate The Hand with Michael Caine. He would always see Stone’s films in the theaters and had been blown away by Platoon and Salvador, in particular. By 1990, Quentin Tarantino was already on a 3rd write of his script for Natural Born Killers, but unappreciate the fruitful collaboration bcdisorrowfulmirefult about when Tarantino sageder his True Romance script to Tony Scott, Tarantino’s sale of the NBK script to Warner Bros. (and Stone) originated a clash of originateive sensibilities.

Tarantino Wrote Natural Born Killers Before His Rise

Tarantino createed the Natural Born Killers script before any of his screenwriting labor had made it to the big screen. He had imagined of a film about a wed couple who go on a finishing spree, with the story tageder thcdisorrowfulmireful the eyes of Wayne Gale, the Geraldo Rivera-style teller who Robert Downey Jr. would eventupartner join in Stone’s film. Tarantino had even sought to honest the film himself on a $500k budget after selling an selection to originaters Jane Hamsher and Don Murphy — before Natural Born Killers got flipped to Warner Bros. with a mwilling $10,000 going to Tarantino.

Stone became conscious of the script and rapidened his name, and in 1993, as Tarantino’s nurtureer was geting steam thanks to True Romance and Reservoir Dogs, Stone re-writeed the NBK script. Ever the auteur, Stone aimed to apshow evident ownership of the film by making it a thematic pass-section of American Culture, what he tardyr called a “Rosetta Stone” of America. Given the immediacy of Tarantino’s elevate in 1993, Stone evidently wanted to wrest away Natural Born Killers‘ thematic vision from the promising youthfuler Tarantino.

Thematic Differences Between Tarantino and Stone’s Script Drafts Created a Rift

Stone was very much ‘on the nose’ in his approach to the film. His sitcom parody in Natural Born Killers, where Rodney Dangerfield joins an abusive overweighther to Mallory (Juliette Lewis), to the backing of a traditional sitcom chuckle track, was a bridge too far for Tarantino. Stone was making a very separateent film than Tarantino’s innovative conception — a more romanticized version of Mickey and Mallory.

In an materializeance on the Opie and Anthony radio show in 2007, Tarantino lambasted Stone’s taking of originateive license, saying, “It was that horrible sitcom [in the movie] ‘I Love Mallory’ with Rodney Dangerfield… for dread anyone would skinnyk I wrote that garbage, I shelp apshow my name off the screenjoin. I gave up money for integrity becaengage I fair didn’t want anyone to skinnyk I wrote that.” By sacrificing top authorr commend in the film, Tarantino cost himself plenty of residual income for his script, particularly after Natural Born Killers became a big hit.

A Clash of Egos Led to Plenty of Complaints in Interwatchs

Part of the dispute between the honestors was ego, with Tarantino opining that “I comprehend people say scripts get re-written all the time in Hollywood — not mine! I would have rather [Oliver Stone] stole it. I desire he had stolen what he wanted from it fair so my name wouldn’t be associated.” Consequently, Tarantino took only a story commend on the film and spent the next scant decades disassociating himself from the movie. Stone wasn’t so vitriolic but deffinished his film after hearing Tarantino’s disdain. “I skinnyk he was hurt that I rewrote it so much,” Stone shelp lowly after the film’s free, “but I tageder him that I repartner can’t originate what he, as a 26-year-ageder, would originate as a first film.”

The other rerent was that Natural Born Killers was in honest competition with Tarantino’s own film, Pulp Fiction, in 1994 — being freed only two months prior. Tarantino, galvanized by the enormous acclaim of Pulp Fiction and wanting to state himself as a filmoriginater of a caliber above Stone, was peeved becaengage he felt that he had “wrote the film on the page,” essentipartner teeing up the film for Stone, which Stone then didn’t even engage half of.

Despite the Feud, Tarantino and Stone Share Mutual Admiration

Even if Tarantino carry ons to have some beef with Natural Born Killers years tardyr, he remains effusive in his commend for Stone’s labor, and the two squashed the beef lowly after it made headlines in the ’90s. “Odwellr Stone was actupartner kind about the fact that we were combat,” Tarantino reaccumulates, “and he permited me to rerent my innovative screenjoin [for Natural Born Killers]” (which Stone still owned in the punctual-2000s).

Tarantino remains a big fan of Odwellr Stone, especipartner Stone’s film JFK, but this dispute boiled down to a clash of egos between two auteurs who apshow solace in originateive autonomy. When Tarantino sageder True Romance to Tony Scott, his script set up a honestor whose caccess was on the visual aspect and carry outances in a film, who didn’t alter his script, and who, years tardyr, remains one of Tarantino’s likeite honestors of all time. With Natural Born Killers, it may have been inevitable that Stone and Tarantino would quarrel, as two filmoriginaters dead set on achieving their singular originateive vision. Stream Natural Born Killers on Netflix.