Quentin Tarantino ignited a wave of film-world debate this week after unveiling his picks for the best movies of the 21st century while simultaneously unleashing a scathing critique of actor Paul Dano.
The Once Upon A Time In Hollywood director shared his much-anticipated list on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, where he praised the films he considers the decade’s most essential but also used the occasion to shockingly attack Dano’s performance in Paul Thomas Anderson’s acclaimed 2007 epic There Will Be Blood—a movie Tarantino nevertheless ranked among his top picks.
Tarantino’s list spans genres from animation to war epics to high-octane action. He described his top pick, Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down, as an “extraordinary” achievement whose intensity and craftsmanship have only deepened with time. He also tapped Toy Story 3 as one of the most emotionally affecting films ever made and praised the atmospheric precision of both Lost in Translation and Dunkirk.
But it was one classic movie in the middle of his rankings—There Will Be Blood—that ended up making news in the wake of Tarantino’s interview with Ellis, the famed novelist who penned American Psycho and Less Than Zero.
Despite placing the film at No. 5, Tarantino tore into Dano’s work as preacher Eli Sunday, calling him “the big, giant flaw” in an otherwise near-perfect film, which he suggested could have been ranked No. 1 or 2 if Dano hadn’t been cast in the movie. He described the actor as “weak sauce” and “a weak sister,” and went further by labeling him “the weakest fucking actor in SAG.”
At one point Tarantino suggested the role would have been better suited for Austin Butler, despite the fact that the Caught Stealing star was only 15 when There Will Be Blood was released. QT later clarified that he doesn’t consider Dano’s performance to be actually terrible, calling it instead “a non-entity performance,” but added bluntly, “I don’t care for him.”
The remarks quickly drew criticism from fans, critics, and fellow filmmakers who argued Dano’s unhinged performance is central to the film’s power. On social media threads discussing Tarantino’s take, many commenters pushed back by praising Dano’s ability to stand his ground opposite a towering performance by Daniel Day-Lewis during some of the film’s most explosive confrontations.
One viewer wrote that Dano’s performance made them “genuinely hate the character—which usually means the actor is doing a damn good job.” Others noted that the tension between Dano’s nervous preacher and Day-Lewis’s domineering oilman is critical to the film’s design.
Dano has been widely acclaimed over the past decade, earning recognition for roles in The Batman, Prisoners, The Fabelmans, Love & Mercy, and Okja. In the same interview, the feisty Tarantino also mentioned disliking the acting of Owen Wilson and Matthew Lillard.
Tarantino has not responded publicly to the backlash to his interview, and Dano has yet to comment on the criticism. In the meantime, check out Tarantino’s top films of the 21st century so far:
- Black Hawk Down (2001)
- Toy Story 3 (2010)
- Lost in Translation (2003)
- Dunkirk (2017)
- There Will Be Blood (2007)
- Zodiac (2007)
- Unstoppable (2010)
- Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
- Shaun of the Dead (2004)
- Midnight in Paris (2011)
