Skip to main content

Tarantino goes back to 1969 with first Once Upon a Time in Hollywood trailer

ONCE UPON A TIME IN HOLLYWOOD - Official Teaser Trailer (HD)

After a year of set photos and intriguing updates, Sony Pictures has finally released the first trailer for Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Recommended Videos

Set against the backdrop of the Manson Family murders in the summer of 1969, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt as a pair of actors trying to get a foothold in the movie business. DiCaprio plays former television leading man Rick Dalton, while Pitt plays his friend and stunt double, Cliff Booth.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

Reported to be another tapestry-style film similar to Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, with various narratives woven around a singular event — in this case, the murder of model and actress Sharon Tate and four friends by the followers of cult leader Charles Manson. The Wolf of Wall Street and I, Tonya actress Margot Robbie portrays Tate in the film.

As usual with Tarantino’s films, the cast is filled with high-profile actors, including more than a few familiar faces from the filmmaker’s past films.

Along with DiCaprio, Pitt, and Robbie, the film’s cast includes Al Pacino (Scent of a Woman), Timothy Olyphant (Santa Clarita Diet), Michael Madsen (Sin City), Tim Roth (Reservoir Dogs), Damian Lewis (Billions), Emile Hirsch (Into the Wild), Dakota Fanning (The Alienist), Bruce Dern (Nebraska), Clifton Collins (Pacific Rim), James Marsden (Westworld), Scoot McNairy (Halt and Catch Fire), Lena Dunham (Girls), and Zoe Bell (Kill Bill). Mindhunter actor Damon Herriman plays Charles Manson in the film.

Also appearing in the film is recently deceased actor Luke Perry, in one of his last acting roles before his death.

As seen in the trailerStreet Fighter actor Mike Moh portrays martial arts legend Bruce Lee in the film, and the actor’s connection to the murders (or lack thereof) will apparently be explored in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

The ninth film from writer-director Tarantino, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood debuted its first poster earlier in the week. Tarantino already has two Academy Awards for screenwriting on his resume (for Django Unchained and Pulp Fiction), but has yet to win the directing category despite two nominations.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is currently scheduled to hit theaters July 26.

Rick Marshall
A veteran journalist with more than two decades of experience covering local and national news, arts and entertainment, and…
Brian Cox still isn’t sure about Jeremy Strong’s method acting approach
Succession Logan and Kendall Roy

Few actors today are willing to say exactly what they think, but thankfully, we've still got Brian Cox. The former star of Succession released his memoir in 2022, and in it, he was unsparing about his feelings on various actors in the industry. He said Steven Seagal was “as ludicrous in real life as he appears on screen," and described Quentin Tarantino's work as "meretricious."

Around that time, Cox also made his opinions known on his Succession co-star Jeremy Strong. Specifically, Cox expressed some skepticism about Strong's method approach to his character. In a recent interview with The Guardian, Cox made it clear that his opinion about Strong's approach hasn't changed.

Read more
The 7 best James Bond villains, ranked
Mads Mikkelsen in Casino Royale.

Just over seven decades ago, author Ian Fleming introduced audiences to James Bond, the British super spy whose adventures have lit up movie theaters since 1962. And the secret to Bond's longevity on the big screen isn't based solely on the way the role is recast every few movies. It's because it takes a special kind of villain to give Bond a credible threat, especially since 007 always seems to win in the end.

However, not every Bond villain can match up with the franchise's top bad guys, who exist in a league of their own. To celebrate the legacy of the films, we've chosen the seven best James Bond villains. And if you know the movies well, our picks are probably not that surprising.

Read more
Director John Waters thinks Joker 2 is one of the best movies of the year
Joker sits at a table while Harley Quin sits behind him.

Director John Waters has made an entire career out of having fairly unconventional taste. His movies are campy outsider art, and he's now mounting a defense of one of the year's most reviled films. In publishing his top 10 films of the year in Vulture, Waters put Joker: Folie à Deux in the sixth spot.

“Finally, a love story I can relate to,” the director wrote accompanying his list. “So insane, so well thought out, so well directed, so much smoking! It’s Jailhouse Rock meets Busby Berkeley with a 9/11 That’s Entertainment! ending that will make you shake your head in cinematic astonishment. Stupid critics. Gaga so good. Joker so right. Die, dumbbells, die!”

Read more