FilmmakerQuentin Tarantinomay beretiring from making moviesafter his 10th film, but that doesn’t mean he won’t still be directing. Indeed, while Tarantino is no stranger to the TV format having helmed episodes ofERandCSIquite some time ago, the filmmaker recently revealed that he’s secretly written five episodes of a Western TV series calledBounty Lawthat he hopes to direct. The kicker? It’s a tie-in of sorts to his new filmOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood.
Hollywoodis Tarantino’s ninth feature film, and it takes place in 1969 and follows a fading TV star who’s failed to make the successful jump to major feature films. The character’s name is Rick Dalton, and he’s played byLeonardo DiCaprioin the movie. But inOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood, the TV show that Dalton is most famous for is a Western TV series calledBounty Law. Tarantino shot portions ofBounty Lawfor its depictions inOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood, but in a new interview with Deadline, the writer-director reveals that he actually wrote episodes of the show that he intends to direct.
After finishing the screenplay forOnce Upon a Time in Hollywood, Tarantino says he wrote five episodes of the TV-show-within-the-movieBounty Lawto get inside Rick Dalton’s head, and now he wants to make them:
“From watching the different old Western shows and everything, I did it to get in the head ofBounty Law. I ended up starting to really like the idea of Jake Cahill, as a character. I really started loving those half hour ’50s Western scripts. The idea that you could write something like 24 minutes, where there was so much story crammed in those half hour shows, with a real beginning and a middle and an end. Also it was kind of fun because you can’t just keep doubling down and exploring. At some point, you’ve got to wrap it up. I really liked that idea. I’ve written five different episodes for a possibleBounty Lawblack-and-white half hour Western show.”
The filmmaker admits that it’s unlikely DiCaprio would reprise his role for the TV series, but he’s open to recasting and essential puts out the onus on Netflix or whoever to call him, and he’ll direct it:
“I can’t imagine Leonardo is going to want to do it. [Maybe I’ll] cast somebody else? If he wants to do it that would be great. I’m not planning on that but I have an outline for about three other episodes. So I’ll probably write about three other episodes and then just do it. Direct every episode. They’re a half hour long. I wouldn’t mind doing it for Netflix but I’d want to shoot it on film. Showtime, HBO, Netflix, FX. But I also like the fact that I built up this mythology forBounty Lawand Jake Cahill.”
This is tremendously on-brand for Tarantino, and I’d love to see him do it. The filmmaker famously flirted with turning his unwieldyInglourious Basterdsscreenplay into a miniseries before editing it down to a feature film, so he’s been considering writing for TV for some time now.
Though it must also be said that Tarantino has spoken about grand plans many times in the past that have never come to fruition. Everything from the fabled Vega Brothers movie toKill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair, which editsVol. 1andVol. 2together into one giant movie (which exists, but hasn’t been released widely). So who knows ifBounty Lawhappens—especially if he does actually go off to makeaStar Trekmovie next—but I like his enthusiasm, and I’d watch this in a heartbeat.
