Matthew Lillard has addressed criticism from Quentin Tarantino, admitting the director’s words “hurt”.
The Pulp Fiction director recently appeared on the Bret Easton Ellis podcast and made headlines for criticising actor Paul Dano. In the same breath, he also said he didn’t “care” for Lillard and fellow actor Owen Wilson.
The Scream actor has now responded to Tarantino during an appearance at GalaxyCon in Ohio, telling the audience: “Eh, whatever. Who gives a shit.”
“The point is, it hurts your feelings,” he added. “It fucking sucks. And you wouldn’t say that to Tom Cruise. You wouldn’t say that to somebody who’s a top-line actor in Hollywood. I’m very popular in this room. I’m not very popular in Hollywood.
“Two totally different microcosms, right? And so, you know, it’s humbling, and it hurts.”
@little_spooks we love you @Matthew lillard #fyp #matthewlillard #quentintarantino #galaxycon #storytime
The star then thanked an audience member after they declared: “We love you.”
During the original interview, Tarantino also called Dano a “weak, uninteresting guy”, notably in regards to his performance in 2007’s There Will Be Blood, which co-stars Daniel Day-Lewis, admitting the film would have topped his list of the best films of the 21st century if it were not for Dano.
“There Will Be Blood would stand a good chance at being No 1 or 2 if it didn’t have a big, giant flaw in it … and the flaw is Paul Dano,” he said. “Obviously, it’s supposed to be a two-hander, but it’s also drastically obvious that it’s not a two-hander. [Dano] is weak sauce, man. He’s a weak sister.”
When Ellis noted that Dano was young at the time and up against Day-Lewis, who was regarded as one of the great actors in cinema, Tarantino added: “So you put him with the weakest male actor in SAG?
“I’m not saying [Dano]’s giving a terrible performance. I’m saying he’s giving a non-entity performance.”
Many people in Hollywood have since come to Dano’s defence, including actor Simu Liu, The Batman director Matt Reeves and writer Mattson Tomlin, and Ben Stiller.
Tarantino’s interview also saw him claim that The Hunger Games “ripped off” 2000 film Battle Royale, saying: “I do not understand how the Japanese writer didn’t sue Suzanne Collins for every fucking thing she owns. They just ripped off the fucking book!”
However, Hunger Games star Josh Hutcherson subsequently defended the franchise, telling Variety: “There are similar themes, for sure. But, you know, everyone borrows from everyone.”
Meanwhile, Lillard can currently be seen in Five Night’s At Freddy’s 2, which NME gave one star, writing: “Despite the odd flash of gore (this is a ‘15’ certificate, so expect minimal scares), the film’s biggest crime is that it’s utterly boring. More uninspiring than a supermarket Margherita pizza, it’s one of the poorest movies of 2025.”