Follow us on Google News
Get the latest updates directly in your Google News feed
The 1994 cult classicPulp Fictionput Quentin Tarantino on the map as a director. The crime film was a runaway hit, with audiences at the time having seen nothing like it. The film was extremely profitable to the studio Miramax, earning over $213 million at the box office. It won Tarantino an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
The film was also a renewed boost to actor John Travolta. TheGreasestar was going through a dry spell after a series of flops. He was cast as Vincent Vega after much resistance from the studio and after Tarantino fought for him. However, there was a time when the role was fought over by two stalwart actors, Bruce Willis and Daniel Day-Lewis.
Also read:“I need to trap these bastards in this warehouse”: Quentin Tarantino Credits Kurt Russell’s $19M Movie for Inspiring His Debut Film That Left Him Scared Sh*tless
How Did Quentin Tarantino MakePulp Fiction?
The story of the development ofQuentin Tarantino’sPulp Fictionis as interesting as the movie itself, albeit with less heroin and gangsters involved. Tarantino wrote an initial version of the film with writer Roger Avary as a short. He claimed that he wanted to make a trilogy of sorts with different characters crossing paths, something like a novel. Tarantino said,
“I got the idea of doing something that novelists get a chance to do but filmmakers don’t: telling three separate stories, having characters float in and out with different weights depending on the story.”
He wanted to take typical genre characters and stories and set them in the real world. The first story he wrote ended up becoming his debut directorialReservoir Dogs. The director finished writing the script forPulp Fictionwhile traveling to international film festivals withReservoir Dogs. He wrote it in Amsterdam, with reports indicating that he was set up at the Red Light District.
After multiple studios rejected the script, Tarantino and producer Lawrence Bender took the script to Miramax, which had recently been acquired by Disney. The firm was then headed by Harvey and Bob Weinstein, who immediately liked the script.Pulp Fictionwas the first film by Miramax to be independently financed by them. The film was budgeted at $8.5 million. The film was released to universal critical acclaim, with many branding it as one of the greatest films ever made.
Also read:“They filled silences with dialogues”: Quentin Tarantino Nearly Got Involved in Studio Ghibli Movie After Hayao Miyazaki Threatened Harvey Weinstein With a Samurai Sword
Bruce Willis And Daniel Day-Lewis Fought Over One Role
Pulp Fictionwas talked about widely even before filming began. Quentin Tarantino had placed a list of demands before Miramax, which included final-cut privileges, the final choice of actors, and a two-and-a-half-hour runtime. His wishlist of actors included John Travolta for the role of Vincent Vega. However, Miramax opposed the casting as Travolta was extremely undesirable at the time. But there was also another problem.
According to Tarantino’s agent Mike Simpson,
“Daniel Day-Lewis and Bruce Willis, who was the biggest star in Hollywood, had both gotten their hands on the script and wanted to play Vincent Vega.”
However, Tarantino was adamant about Travolta’s casting.
Simpson mentioned that Miramax tried to get out of the decision by trying to push the discussion, but Simpson was not going to have it.
“You’re going to agree to it right now, or there’s no deal.”
John Travolta was finally cast as Vincent Vega, with Bruce Willis appearing as Butch, the boxer. The Travolta casting paid off as the actor gained an Academy Award nomination for his performance and it revived his career. Simpson mentioned later that Miramax CEO Harvey Weinstein took the credit for casting Travolta at a screening.
Source:Vanity Fair
Also read:“You have to have this special kind of blood”: Quentin Tarantino Had a Strange Demand for His $332M Saga That Almost Got Uma Thurman Killed in Freak Accident
Nishanth A
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2417
Nishanth A is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, majorly focusing on TV shows with over 2,000 articles published. He has been an entertainment journalist for the past two years and a scriptwriter at various corporations before that, working on educational content. With a Communications, English Literature, and Psychology triple major, Nishanth usually covers news and analyses on Star Trek, particularly Strange New Worlds and The Next Generation; Doctor Who, the DCU, and more.A Nolan fan, Nishanth spends his time exploring the filmographies of various directors with an auteurial style or can be found making short movies of his own. He has also contributed as a feature writer for Film Companion, focusing on the South division.
