Ragesh Dipu
Quentin Tarantino’s take on the golden age of the tinsel town, ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,’ eyes a $30M debut. The movie, which is slated for a July 26, 2019 release, is even expected to hit the $50M mark in its opening weekend at the box office, reports THR. Considering the star-studded cast of the movie, such projections and surveys stand a chance. ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ features Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie in the lead roles with Al Pacino, Dakota Fanning, Kurt Russell, Lena Dunham, and the late Luke Perry playing major roles.
Even though Tarantino flicks don’t always enjoy big box office openings, Sony Pictures reportedly put around $90M as production fees excluding international marketing expenses. The biggest opening weekend haul for a Tarantino film so far was a $38M grossed by ‘Django Unchained’ in 2017. The Academy Award-winning slave narrative, ‘Django,’ starring Jamie Foxx, Christoph Waltz, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Samuel L. Jackson, went on to become Tarantino’s all-time highest grosser with $162M from domestic and $262M from the international box office.
Whereas, the director’s last flick, ‘The Hateful Eight,’ which released in 2015, opened up to a mere $15M from the domestic market. But the movie performed better in the international arena with an earning of $101M. To add fuel to the flame, reports speculating Tarantino’s apparent retirement from movies after ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ also take their rounds on social media platforms and discussion forums.
When asked about his rumored farewell, Tarantino told GQ Australia, “I see myself writing film books and starting to write theater, so I’ll still be creative. I just think I’ve given all I have to give to movies.”
Set in 1969, ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ follows a struggling actor Rick Dalton (DiCaprio), who is known for his roles in shoddy Westerns, and his buddy, the stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt). Both men are on the face of an identity crisis while Hollywood goes through a dynamic transformation. But the plot thickens when the notorious Charles Manson murder mystery broke out, as the victim is the rising star Sharon Tate (Robbie), who happens to be Rick’s neighbor.
The recently released trailer for the movie hints at a celebration of the tropes, music, and icons of the ‘60s. ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ hits theaters on July 26, 2019.
Tarantino concluded his GQ Magazine interview with the cryptic monologue about the mysterious connection between the fate of the movie at the box office and his future, “If it’s really well-received, maybe I won’t go to 10. Maybe I’ll stop right now! Maybe I’ll stop while I’m ahead. We’ll see.”
Cover Image Courtesy: Sony Pictures.
