The one actor Quentin Tarantino called “hands down” his favourite actor right now
Over the course of his illustrious career in the world of cinema, Quentin Tarantino has worked with some of the biggest names in the industry. Ranging from Samuel L Jackson and Bruce Willis to bonafide global stars like Uma Thurman, Brad Pitt, and Leonardo DiCaprio, Tarantino’s films have always featured stellar casts that have contributed immensely to their success as well as Tarantino’s legacy as a filmmaker.
While gaining his position as an expert director is often attributed to his unique style, flashy violence and idiosyncratic storytelling techniques, one of his most overlooked assets is his casting. Taranitno often writes his characters with certain actors in mind, and this makes the ensembles he assembles some of the best in the business. Across his filmography, it is difficult to think of one character who should have been played by another actor.
During an interview with Charlie Rose, the director once named who he considers to be the greatest actor in the world, and it turned out to be a collaborator. Tarantino had worked with Robert De Niro, the star of masterpieces like Taxi Driver and Raging Bull, on his 1997 gem Jackie Brown, and that was enough for him to come to a conclusion regarding the actor’s value.
“He deserves his reputation as probably the greatest actor of his generation,” Tarantino said of De Niro. “I think he is the best actor in the world. I’ve never seen an actor so completely consume himself in character, in true character work during the work. And what I mean by that is when Robert is playing Louis…he is working moment to moment.” It’s high praise from a director who cherishes the power an actor can bring to his words.
However, Tarantino has another favourite among the newer generation of actors, and he hasn’t cast him yet. In an episode of The Rewatchables Podcast, the legendary filmmaker claimed that his favourite contemporary actor was none other than Chris Pine. Although Pine has appeared in major productions like the Star Trek series, the controversial Don’t Worry Darling, and David Mackenzie’s neo-western Hell or High Water, Tarantino has a different favourite Chris Pine film.
While talking about the 2010 action thriller Unstoppable, Tarantino gushed: “I think one of the things that’s exciting about the movie is I am a huge Chris Pine fan… Now, to me, of the actors of his age, he’s hands down my favourite – of that group, of that era, of those guys.”
Based on a real incident, Unstoppable teams up veteran actor Denzel Washington and Chris Pine, two members of the railway industry, who come together to figure out how to stop a runaway train. The film was a commercial success and ended up earning a nomination at the Academy Awards in the ‘Best Sound Editing’ category.
“I think a case can be made that Pine hasn’t taken the next big leap from Unstoppable,” Tarantino commented on the reasons behind the growing obsolescence of Pine’s career as an actor, which was deemed promising at one point. “Frankly, to tell you the truth, he’s been good in other movies [but] he hasn’t had that.”
When asked whether Tarantino would be willing to cast Chris Pine for his own project, the filmmaker replied: “I’m the biggest fan of him. So if I had the right part, I would – I’d like to.”
As Tarantino lines up his tenth and apparently final movie, Pine will be hoping that an email hits his inbox asking for a meeting. At the same time, his career is certainly of value; thus far, it’s hard to see movies like Dungeons and Dragons as anything other than a hefty paycheque. It would be a shame to see such a gifted performer spend the majority of his career in such roles, but perhaps this is where Tarantino needs to put his money where his mouth is.
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