Tarantino Threatened Pitt in On-Set Clash

and 's clash of egos on the set of Once Upon A Time in Hollywood has been revealed by gossiping co-star Bruce Dern.

Acclaimed actor Pitt, 62, who won an Oscar for his role as Cliff Booth in the 2019 film, allegedly invoked the ire of Tarantino, 63, when he cut the camera during a critical scene with Dern, 89, playing elderly ranch owner George Spahn.

Dern told People that the awkward moment unfolded when Pitt's Cliff stops by the ranch to check in on George - with Dern performing one of his signature improvised moments, dubbed a 'Dernsie.'

'When Brad Pitt wakes me up in Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, I'm in the bed and I get up and I'm a little groggy and stuff and I just say, "I'm not really sure what's going on" Dern said.

'I'm looking at him. [Pitt] cut the camera. He cut the camera. The look on Quentin's face - I mean, he was insanely grave - and he said, "Brad, what did you just do?"

Dern added: 'He said, "Well, I cut the camera." He said, "Never again in your life will you ever cut a camera or you'll be dead in this business. That's my domain. Don't stop behavior."

'So then we went on and did the scene and all Brad did was say to him, "Well, that wasn't in the script what he said."'

Dern said the pair then resumed filming, where he improvised a new line: 'I don't know who you are, but you touched me today. You came to visit me, now I gotta go back to sleep.'

The Daily Mail has contacted representatives for Brad Pitt and Quentin Tarantino for comment.

While Tarantino exploded at Pitt, their friendship has endured, with a source exclusively telling The Daily Mail: 'Quentin ranks among Brad's favorite directors, the two have a great rapport.'

In December 2025, Tarantino memorably blasted Paul Dano, branding him the 'weakest actor in SAG' in a jibe that sparked worldwide outrage.

The director appeared on an episode of The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast and described Dano, 41, as a 'flaw' in 2007's Oscar-winning movie There Will Be Blood. 

And when host Ellis reasoned that Daniel Day-Lewis' performance may have simply 'overshadowed' Dano's, Tarantino doubled down: 'So you put him with the weakest male actor in SAG? The limpest d**k in the world?' 

Dano has earned a spot among the most distinguished stars in entertainment, appearing in The Fabelmans, The Batman, Prisoners, and Love & Mercy among others.

His accolades include a BAFTA Best Supporting Actor nod for There Will Be Blood, a Golden Globe nomination and two Emmy nominations.

Last year Tarantino was fiercely criticized after he admitted to choking and spitting on in a resurfaced interview.

Social media users dug out his 'disturbing' 2018 interview in which he defended his choice to strangle Thurman during takes of Kill Bill.

According to Deadline's report, Tarantino also decided to spit on Thurman while filming the 2003 hit because he didn't trust actor Michael Madsen or another crew member to do it in a way that would be respectful.

He said: 'I love [Madsen] he's a terrific actor, but I didn't trust him with this kind of intricate work, of nailing this.

'So, the idea is, I'm doing it, I'm taking responsibility. Also, I'm the director, so I can kind of art direct this spit.

'I know where I want it to land. I'm right next to the camera. So, boom! I do it. Now, if I screw up and I keep missing, once we get to that third one, if she doesn't want to do it anymore, well then, that's on me.'

Turning his attention to why he decided to strangle Thurman, Tarantino claimed that she had actually suggested the move.

The scene in question took place when assassin Gogo (played by Chiaki Kuryama) threw her deadly chain around Thurman's character's neck.

According to the filmmaker, he claimed Thurman had said that she could act 'all strangle-y, but if you want my face to get red and the tears to come to my eye, then you kind of need to choke me.'

He added to the publication: 'I was the one on the other end of the chain and we kind of only did it for the close ups. And we pulled it off. Now, that was her idea.'

Tarantino's resurfaced interview left Reddit users on disturbed after it was discussed in a thread over the weekend.

Taking to the comments, one said: 'Quentin Tarantino should shut the f**k up.'

Another commented: 'Is he canceled yet? He should be.'