Quentin Tarantino made headlines earlier this week for slamming Paul Dano’s performance in “There Will Be Blood,” a film the director ranked #5 on his top 20 films of the 21st Century list. QT didn’t hold back in his comments and was borderline sadistic, calling the actor the “weak flaw” of Paul Thomas Anderson’s 2007 film and Dano “the worst f*cking actor in SAG.” Ever heard of the old adage, “if you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all,” Quentin?
Well, the rest of Hollywood sure has, and Variety reports that Tinseltown veterans are coming in droves to defend Dano against Tarantino’s words. “Shang-Chi” star Simu Liu jumped on X to celebrate Dano’s work, saying ““[I don’t know] man I think Paul Dano is an incredible actor.” “The Batman Part II” scribe Mattson Tomlin also chimed in on the same platform: “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.”
Dano’s “There Will Be Blood” co-star Dillon Freasier, a child actor at the time, also defended the actor to TMZ. Freasier called the film “perfect,” adding, “It’s a work of art. And it’s that way because everyone was perfectly cast.” But “There Will Be Blood” is just one of several notable Dano performances over the actor’s career. Others include “Little Miss Sunshine,” “12 Years A Slave,” “The Batman,” and yes, the previously mentioned “Wildlife”; four movies that demonstrate Dano’s range and abilities and that he’s hardly, as Tarantino puts it, “weak sauce.”
Now, Tarantino is known for his overly enthusiastic rants about cinema, full of brazen, absolutist takes. However, his thoughts on Dano’s acting, and his “There Will Be Blood” performance in particular, aren’t just out of line; they’re also dead wrong. Tarantino’s definition of a “two-hander” must be different than most everyone else’s, because Dano plays against Daniel Day-Lewis‘ towering, rageful performance in precisely that way. Dan plays Eli Sunday with meekness, and calculated meekness at that, against Plainview’s wrath. That’s about as sturdy a “strong foil” as a movie like that could get, even if it comes off as a “non-entity performance” to QT. And this doesn’t even touch on Tarantino calling Dano a “weak, uninteresting guy” and “the limpest dick in the world.” Those are called potshots, and even the most voluble critics know when not to throw them.
In other words, this is all off-base for Tarantino, and also off-putting for those who remain his fans. Directors should be championing their art form and those who work in the medium, lifting up rather than taking down. Maybe Alec Baldwin‘s response to Tarantino’s tirade against Dano says it best: short, succinct, playful, and to the point. Maybe it’s time to shut up, QT, and stop putting off your alleged tenth and final film. If you want to make a major statement to the industry, do it with that instead.
