Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino is making the rounds to promote his nonfiction novel “Cinema Speculation” and, while speaking with Elvis Mitchell during the book tour (via IndieWire) in NYC, dished out some tiny details about the script for his tenth and final film.
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The writer/director revealed that the untitled project would come from an “original script” rather than being an adaptation like his fantastic film “Jackie Brown,” which Tarantino adapted/reimagined from the Elmore Leonard crime novel, “Rum Punch.” However, he was once tempted to adapt Lenoard’s book “Stick” but has since moved away from that idea. Fans will have to wait a bit longer for more details about Tarantino’s last film as the director seems to be busy with a miniseries project potentially moving forward, possibly that long talked-up “Bounty Law” spinoff.
During that same chat, Tarantino was asked about what Marvel Comics property he’d want to do, hypothetically speaking (the director said earlier this month that he’d never make a film for the MCU). Tarantino responded with “Sgt. Nick Fury & His Howling Commandos,” a WWII comic that featured the original incarnation of the Nick Fury character that his longtime muse Samuel L. Jackson currently plays in the MCU.
Tarantino’s answer shouldn’t be too shocking for fans of the filmmaker. Back in 2009, Tarantino told MTV News that his WWII epic “Inglorious Basterds” was indeed influenced by the comic. “[The Basterds] are kind of comic book-y,” said Tarantino. “A big influence on the Basterds was Marvel Comics’ ‘Sgt. Fury & His Howling Commandos.’ That was definitely an influence on that flick.”
That wouldn’t be the last of that comic’s influence on Tarantino’s work. If you look closely enough at Cliff Booth’s trailer sequence in Tarantino’s “Once Upon A Time In Hollywood,” the camera pans over his comic book collection, featuring a vintage “Howling Commandos” comic. Also, Rick Dalton appears in a fictional in-universe WWII movie called “The 14 Fists of McCluskey” in “Hollywood,” where he plays an American soldier character that wears an eyepatch very similar to the iconic one worn by Marvel’s Nick Fury.
Of course, the MCU has significantly deviated from the original versions of both Nick Fury and The Howling Commandos, as the latter ended up being Steve Rogers’ WWII team, replacing The Invaders for Joe Johnston’s “Captain America: The First Avenger.” Also, the MCU’s iteration of Fury takes inspiration directly from Mark Millar’s Ultimates run. Still, his WWII service was nixed by focusing on his activities as one of the world’s greatest spies.
This isn’t the first time Tarantino has mused about tackling a comic book film. He once wanted to make a “Luke Cage” movie starring Laurence Fishburne in the 1990s and also thought WWII superhero, “Sgt. Rock,” could make a good movie in the past, too. With Tarantino about to retire from filmmaking, it doesn’t feel like he’ll ever tackle the superhero genre, at least from the theatrical side of things. But maybe he’ll surprise everyone with a final movie that no one expects.
“Cinema Speculation” is now available at bookstores everywhere.