Quentin Tarantino slams the Marvel-isation of Hollywood and says MCU actors aren’t movie stars
Quentin Tarantino is well and truly sick of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The iconic director has never shied away from genre-hopping, however, it seems he will never touch a superhero movie.
He has hit out at Marvel's smash-hit films, claiming the actors who play the likes of Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man are not real movie stars.
Ouch. Someone ought to tell Robert Downey Jr.
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Sitting down with Tom Segura for his podcast 2 Bears, 1 Cave, Tarantino did not hold back when it came to burning the actors involved with the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
"Part of the Marvel-ization of Hollywood is… you have all these actors who have become famous playing these characters," the famed director said.
"But they’re not movie stars. Right? Captain America is the star. Or Thor is the star. I mean, I’m not the first person to say that."
He added: "I think that’s been said a zillion times, you know, but, you know, but it’s like, you know, it’s these franchise characters that become a star."
Tarantino, who collected Marvel comics as a kid, said he isn't trying to put the films down, but there is one big problem with Hollywood's obsession with the superhero genre.
"My only axe to grind against them is they’re the only things that seem to be made," he told Segura.
"And they’re the only things that seem to generate any kind of excitement amongst a fan base or even like for the studio making them.
"That’s what they’re excited about. And, you know, so it’s just the fact that they are the entire representation of this era of movies right now."
He added: "There’s not really much room for anything else. That’s my problem."
It's not the first time that Tarantino has lashed out at the superhero flicks.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times in early November, Tarantino was asked why he has never worked on a Marvel or even a DC movie.
"You have to be a hired hand to do those things," he said.
"I’m not a hired hand. I’m not looking for a job."
The filmmaker then compared the current slate of superhero movies to the studio musical boom of the 1960s.
He recalled how New Hollywood auteurs rejoiced when the studio musical went into decline over six decades ago.
Comparing to that, Tarantino added that modern filmmakers 'can’t wait for the day they can say that about superhero movies'.
He said: "The analogy works because it’s a similar chokehold.
"The writing’s not quite on the wall yet, the way it was in 1969 when it was, 'Oh, my God, we just put a bunch of money into things that nobody gives a damn about anymore'."
Topics: Quentin Tarantino, Marvel, Entertainment, Film and TV
Rachel Lang