Quentin Tarantino refuses to recut Once Upon a Time in Hollywood for China

The Hollywood Reporter has brought word that after China’s censors pulled Once Upon a Time in Hollywood from its release, writer/director Quentin Tarantino has chosen not to work with the regulators to recut his film for their approval.

Sources are reporting that the director is standing tall against the censors while also reportedly not being given any explanation as to why they want it cut, with theories speculating it comes from Tarantino’s portrayal of actor Bruce Lee, who is of Chinese descent, as Lee’s daughter has raised criticisms for the film’s portrayal of her father and has directly appealed to China’s National Film Association for help getting it recut.

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The massive ensemble cast for the film includes Leonardo DiCaprio (The Departed), Brad Pitt (Fight Club), Margot Robbie (Suicide Squad), Timothy Olyphant (Santa Clarita Diet), Michael Madsen (Sin City), Tim Roth (Selma), Damian Lewis (Billions), Luke Perry (The Fifth Element), Emile Hirsch (Speed Racer), Lena Dunham (Girls), Dakota Fanning (The Alienist), Margaret Qualley (The Nice Guys), Maya Hawke (Stranger Things), Clifton Collins (Pacific Rim), Keith Jefferson (The Hateful Eight), Nicholas Hammond (The Sound of Music), James Marsden (Westworld), Julia Butters (Transparent), James Remar (48 Hours), Scoot McNairy (Halt and Catch Fire), Kurt Russell (Furious 7), Bruce Dern (Nebraska) and Al Pacino (Scarface).

Set in Los Angeles in the summer of 1969, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood focuses on a male TV actor named Rick Dalton (DiCaprio) who’s had one hit western series and is looking for a way to get into the film business. His sidekick Cliff Booth (Pitt) — who’s also his stunt double — is looking for the same thing. The horrific murder of Sharon Tate (Rick’s neighbor in the film, portrayed by Robbie) and four of her friends by Charles Manson’s cult of followers serves as a backdrop to the main story. The movie is said to be similar to a “Pulp Fiction-like tapestry” that covers a group of characters during that summer.