Randy Holmes/ABC via Getty Images
Quentin Tarantino is close to selling his 10th film project, which the director has long said will be his last feature film.
The Pulp Fiction mastermind is gearing up to invite multiple buyers to read his latest screenplay in the coming days, a source familiar with the upcoming auction has said. The Oscar-winner is aiming for a deal similar to his latest film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, the source added. This means a solid theatrical release commitment and ownership of the film’s copyright (in the case of Sony Pictures and Once Upon a Time, the deal said the film’s copyright would revert to Tarantino after 20 years).
The process of reading the script is similar to the extreme security measures put in place around Once Upon a Time, when studio executives had to haul to Tarantino’s agent’s Beverly Hills office and read pages in a conference room. The protocols were put in place after Tarantino’s script for the 2015 film The Hateful Eight was widely leaked.
Tarantino officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The new movie, first reported about its existence by THR, is reportedly called The Movie Critic. Other sources warned that this is a working title and not final. The project has a female lead at its core, the report said, and could be based on the life of well-known film critic Pauline Kael.
For years, Oscar-winner Tarantino has expressed a desire to be at the top of his game — and says many credible directors lose their luster later in life. He wasn’t directly calling for retirement. While promoting his 2022 book Cinema Speculation, Tarantino reveals plans to direct an eight-episode television series. However, a theme, a cast or a distribution are still pending.