Wield your imaginative powers as we delve into a riddle: Which A-list director admires Paul Dano's talents so much that he deems him "incredible"? Not the enigmatic Quentin Tarantino, but one of his peers who has publicly expressed his admiration. Enter Matt Reeves, the mastermind behind the 2022 blockbuster, The Batman, where Dano shone as the Riddler. "Paul Dano is an incredible actor and an incredible person," Reeves gushed on X Thursday, days after a viral podcast appearance where Tarantino cast a shadow on Dano's performance in There Will Be Blood.
During his appearance on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast, Tarantino ranked his top movies of the 21st century, with Paul Thomas Anderson's 2007 masterpiece claiming the fifth spot. However, he had a bone to pick: "This film would have a better chance of being number one or two if it didn't have a glaring flaw." And that flaw, he proclaimed, was Paul Dano. "It's supposed to be a two-hander, but it's so obviously not. He's weak sauce—a weak sister."
Dano, who dazzled as Edward Nashton/The Riddler in Reeves' The Batman, has graced the screens of numerous acclaimed directors, including Steven Spielberg and Denis Villeneuve. "I'm not saying he gave a terrible performance," Tarantino clarified about Dano's work in There Will Be Blood. "I'm saying he gave a non-entity performance. I don't care for him. Owen Wilson? Matthew Lillard? Neither do I."
Reeves is gearing up for The Batman Part II, with Scarlett Johansson joining the cast in an undisclosed role, adding another layer of intrigue to this already captivating cinematic universe.
