Summary
- Quentin Tarantino’s early ’90s life was full of drama, from video store clerk to legendary director.
- Tarantino wrote the
Natural Born Killers
script before his screenwriting work hit big screens. - The clash of egos between Tarantino and Oliver Stone led to script revisions and resentment.
As a cinephile with decades of movie-watching under my belt, I must confess that the feud between Quentin Tarantino and Oliver Stone is a fascinating tale of creative rivalry. Being a fan of both directors, I can’t help but empathize with their unique perspectives.
In the ’90s, the extraordinary events that transformed Quentin Tarantino from an unremarkable video store clerk to a filmmaking legend could potentially become the plot of a movie someday. Starting around 1990, Tarantino was penning scripts for movies like “Reservoir Dogs,” under the guidance of producer Lawrence Bender, and “True Romance,” which would later be directed by Tony Scott. Additionally, he was working on “Natural Born Killers.” All this was happening while he was a well-known figure at the Video Archives in Manhattan Beach, California, where his movie recommendations made him a local authority.
Quentin Tarantino had long admired Oliver Stone, even appreciating lesser-known films like ‘The Hand’ starring Michael Caine. He always made sure to catch Stone’s movies in theaters and was particularly impressed by ‘Platoon’ and ‘Salvador’. By 1990, Tarantino had already drafted the third version of his script for ‘Natural Born Killers’, but unlike the successful partnership that resulted when he sold his ‘True Romance’ script to Tony Scott, Tarantino’s sale of the NBK script to Warner Bros. (and Stone) led to a disagreement over artistic visions.
Tarantino Wrote Natural Born Killers Before His Rise
In the early days of my screenwriting career, I, Quentin Tarantino, penned the script for “Natural Born Killers” before it graced the silver screen. This film was a unique concept about a murderous couple, narrated from the perspective of Wayne Gale, a Geraldo Rivera-esque journalist, whom Robert Downey Jr. portrayed in Oliver Stone’s adaptation. Notably, I had aspired to direct this project on a modest budget of $500k after selling an option to producers Jane Hamsher and Don Murphy. Regrettably, “Natural Born Killers” was later sold to Warner Bros., leaving me with a mere $10,000 from the deal.
In 1993, as Quentin Tarantino was rising in fame due to films like “True Romance” and “Reservoir Dogs,” Oliver Stone reworked the script for “Natural Born Killers.” Being a director with a strong vision, Stone wanted to assert his control over the film by making it a reflection of American culture, which he referred to as a “Rosetta Stone” of America. Given that Tarantino was gaining prominence quickly in 1993, it seemed that Stone aimed to claim the thematic direction of “Natural Born Killers” from the up-and-coming Tarantino.
Thematic Differences Between Tarantino and Stone’s Script Drafts Created a Rift
In his handling of the film, Stone veered too closely to cliche, as seen in his satirical take on sitcoms within “Natural Born Killers.” Here, Rodney Dangerfield portrayed an abusive father toward Mallory (Juliette Lewis), all while a typical sitcom laugh track played. This departure from Tarantino’s vision was significant, as Stone’s interpretation of Mickey and Mallory was more romanticized than the original plan.
In 2007, during an interview on Opie and Anthony’s radio show, Quentin Tarantino criticized Bruce Willis’ creative choices in a movie, stating that some scenes resembled a poorly written sitcom called “I Love Mallory” featuring Rodney Dangerfield. To avoid any confusion that he was the author of such poor writing, Tarantino asked for his name to be removed from the screenplay, thereby relinquishing potential income from royalties. This decision was significant, as it followed the success of “Natural Born Killers,” a film in which Tarantino had previously received substantial earnings.
A Clash of Egos Led to Plenty of Complaints in Interviews
One aspect of the disagreement between the directors stemmed from ego, with Tarantino expressing that he wished Oliver Stone had taken more from his script for the movie to distance himself from it. While Stone didn’t show the same level of hostility, he defended his work after hearing Tarantino’s criticism. Stone explained shortly after the film’s release that Tarantino might have been upset because Stone made significant changes to the original script, but as a 26-year-old, Tarantino couldn’t have produced the movie Stone ended up making. As a result, Tarantino only claimed a story credit for the film and spent several decades distancing himself from it.
In 1994, there was tension since the movie “Natural Born Killers” was competing head-on with Quentin Tarantino’s own production, “Pulp Fiction.” Remarkably, these two films hit theaters just two months apart. Tarantino, buoyed by the massive success of “Pulp Fiction” and eager to establish himself as a superior filmmaker compared to Stone, felt aggrieved because he believed that much of his original script went unused by Stone, who only utilized a small fraction of it in the end.
Despite the Feud, Tarantino and Stone Share Mutual Admiration
Despite maintaining a lingering disagreement with Natural Born Killers over the years, Tarantino has consistently lauded Stone’s work. Their dispute, which was widely publicized in the ’90s, eventually resolved itself. As Tarantino recounts, “Oliver Stone was understanding about our conflict,” and he permitted Tarantino to publish his initial screenplay for Natural Born Killers (which Stone still owned in the early 2000s).
Tarantino continues to admire Oliver Stone, particularly his movie JFK, however, their relationship turned into a dispute between two self-reliant directors who cherish their independent artistic control. When Tarantino sold True Romance to Tony Scott, his script found a director whose emphasis was on the visual elements and acting in films, who didn’t modify his script, and who, to this day, is one of Tarantino’s favorite directors. With Natural Born Killers, it wasn’t surprising that Stone and Tarantino would argue, as two filmmakers determined to realize their unique artistic visions. Watch Natural Born Killers on Netflix.
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2024-08-11 22:31