Ethan Hawke hits out at Quentin Tarantino’s “hateful” comments about Paul Dano
After Quentin Tarantino called Paul Dano “the weakest fucking actor in SAG [The Screen Actors Guild]”, Ethan Hawke is the latest figure in Hollywood to defend him.
On The Joe Rogan Experience, Hawke described Tarantino’s comments towards Dano as “hateful” and “negative” before detailing why it has been a “great lesson in dealing with negativity”.
Hawke shared, “I don’t think Paul Dano ever knew that so many people loved him.”
He then empathised with Dano: “He’s gotta wake up one morning and find out this director’s went off on him and saying these hateful things, but anyone who knows Quentin knows he just talks and talks.
The actor added: “Anyone who knows Paul knows he’s a world-class human being.”
This conversation was sparked when Tarantino listed his favourite movies of the 21st century on the Bret Easton Ellis podcast. He said There Will Be Blood by Paul Thomas Anderson was number five, but could have been higher if it weren’t for Dano.
The Pulp Fiction director shared, “There Will Be Blood would stand a good chance at being one or two if it didn’t have a big, giant flaw in it … and the flaw is Paul Dano.”
Tarantino continued, “He is weak sauce, man. He’s a weak sister. Austin Butler would have been wonderful in that role. [Dano is] just such a weak, weak, uninteresting guy. The weakest fucking actor in SAG [Screen Actors Guild].”
Dano has been awarded consistent acclaim throughout his career for performances in films such as Little Miss Sunshine, Meek’s Cutoff and in 2014, he earned a nomination for the Golden Globe for ‘Best Supporting Actor’ for his portrayal of Beach Boys frontman Brian Wilson in Love & Mercy.
Many Hollywood figures have come to Dano’s defence, including The Batman director Matt Reeves. On December 4th, he wrote on social media, “Paul Dano is an incredible actor, and an incredible person.”
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