Actress Rosanna Arquette is criticizing filmmaker Quentin Tarantino for his repeated use of a racial slur in several of his films, calling the practice “racist and creepy.”
In an interview with The Times U.K., Arquette said she no longer believes the use of the language in Tarantino’s movies should be excused under the banner of artistic expression. The actress, who appeared in Tarantino’s 1994 film Pulp Fiction, acknowledged the movie’s cultural impact but argued that the issue of the language used in some of the director’s work has been overlooked for too long.
“Personally I am over the use of the N-word — I hate it,” Arquette said. “I cannot stand that he has been given a hall pass. It’s not art, it’s just racist and creepy.”
Arquette noted that while she still considers Pulp Fiction to be a landmark film, she believes audiences and the industry should be more critical of how racial language has been used in some of Tarantino’s projects.
“It’s iconic, a great film on a lot of levels,” she said of the movie, while adding that the director’s continued use of the word has become increasingly troubling to her.
Tarantino’s 2012 film Django Unchained has frequently been cited in the debate over the director’s use of the slur. The Western drama, starring Jamie Foxx as a freed slave seeking to rescue his wife, includes the term more than 100 times in dialogue meant to reflect the racism of the pre–Civil War era.
The film drew criticism from some figures in Hollywood at the time of its release.
Director Spike Lee publicly objected to the language used in Django Unchained, telling Vibe magazine that the film’s dialogue was offensive to him personally.
“It’s disrespectful to my ancestors,” Lee said, while clarifying that he was speaking for himself rather than others.
Lee had previously criticized Tarantino for similar language in his 1997 crime drama Jackie Brown, saying he had long had a “definite problem” with the director’s approach.
Despite the criticism, Tarantino has consistently defended his writing and has said he has no intention of altering his storytelling style.
“They think I should soften it, that I should lie, that I should massage,” Tarantino said in a 2013 interview. “I would never do that when it comes to my characters.”
“I believe in what I’m doing wholeheartedly and passionately,” he added, explaining that ignoring critics is part of his creative process.
Actor Jamie Foxx, who starred in Django Unchained, has previously defended the film’s use of historically accurate language. Speaking during an interview with Howard Stern, Foxx said he understood the context of the script and believed the story portrayed his character as a heroic figure despite the harsh dialogue.
Foxx also recalled that some cast members initially struggled with the language in the script. According to Foxx, actor Leonardo DiCaprio — who played a brutal plantation owner in the film — found it difficult at first to deliver lines containing the slur.
Foxx said fellow actor Samuel L. Jackson encouraged the cast to focus on the historical context of the story and not let the language prevent them from telling the story authentically.
The debate surrounding Tarantino’s films continues to surface periodically as audiences revisit the director’s body of work and examine how Hollywood portrays race and historical themes.
