Quentin Tarantino Once Fought Hard To Get This MCU Actor Over Johnny Depp For His Film Pulp Fiction ( Photo Credit – Wikimedia; IMDb; Facebook )
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Johnny Depp might be one of the biggest Hollywood stars, but sometimes, for some filmmakers, that is not enough to feature in a film. Celebrated director Quentin Tarantino is a prime example of such a director who chose this MCU star over Depp for his cult classic Pulp Fiction. The 1994 film had an ensemble cast of Bruse Willis, Uma Thurman, Tim Roth, Samuel L Jackson, John Travolta, and more.
The film boasts Tarantino’s cinematic brilliance and a gripping plotline, telling the stories revolving around two mob hitmen, a boxer, a gangster and his wife, and a pair of diner bandits. On the other hand, Depp was already a massive movie star with some blockbusters in his filmography. The Pirates of the Caribbean star was already a big name in Hollywood back then, and the company funding the 1994 classic wanted Depp at any cost.
Quentin Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction was initially in talks with TriStar Pictures for getting the fund, and its chairman Mike Medavoy was adamant about bringing Johnny Depp into the project. However, the director fought hard to avoid that, not because he had beef with the Pirates of the Caribbean star but because he had another actor capable in mind for the said role.
The role in question here is that of Punpkin, which Tim Roth ultimately played as Tarantino planned from the beginning. Quentin and Tim worked in the film Reservoir Dogs, and the former was impressed by Roth’s work in it.
For the unversed, Tim Roth played the role of Abomination in Edward Norton-led The Incredible Hulk in 2008. He again reprised his role in the MCU in the Disney+ series She-Hulk.
As per a Variety report, Quentin Tarantino fought hard to get Tim Roth for Pumpkin’s role instead of Mike’s casting of Johnny Depp. The Pulp Fiction director asked the executive, “Do you think Johnny Depp playing the role of Pumpkin in this movie, which is the opening scene and the closing scene that’s it, do you think that will add that much to the box office? Him playing that role?'”
The filmmaker revealing what the executive’s response was said, “Mike said, ‘It won’t add a dime, but it would make me feel better.'” Luckily, TriStar Pictures dropped the film, and Miramax picked it up, and he got his wish to cast the Marvel star Tim Roth fulfilled.
