If you found yourself watching The Hateful Eight thinking the whole thing seemed better suited for the stage than film, you’re not alone. Many people noted that the length and single setting made the movie feel like a play, and that’s not just the opinion of grubby popcorn-munchers, either. Even Harvey Weinstein suggested Tarantino should adapt the script into a stage performance early in the project’s development.
Tarantino stuck to his guns and got The Hateful Eight made as a movie, but now that it’s done and out, he sounds very serious about turning it into his very first play. Via The Wrap:
“I’ve thought it out completely. I’m just waiting for this [awards] season to be over so I can write it,” Tarantino said. “I gotta put myself there and write it for this.” The filmmaker also said that he would direct the stage version as well.
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“Harvey actually — he tried to talk me into doing it as a play first,” Tarantino explained. “He said, ‘Let’s just say this out loud before we commit to doing the movie.’ And I was like, ‘Look, I could. But I like the mystery aspect and the mystery aspect will really only work in the movie. And I have the 70mm and I have the snow. So let me do that.’”
Is it gonna be a musical? Please tell me it’s going to be a musical. I feel like there’s a huge Chicago-style ballad just waiting to be penned detailing the dastardly deeds of Daisy Domergue. And with the only set being Minnie’s Haberdashery, that frees up the budget for Quentin to get his rotating roster of A-list actors in on this. Or he could spend all the money on acrobatic special effects the likes of which haven’t been seen since Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark. Who wouldn’t pay to see Samuel L. Jackson (or his understudy) do a 30-foot backflip off a stagecoach into the orchestra pit?
The Hateful Eight has already seen the stage, sorta. After the script leaked and Tarantino was considered canning the whole project, a live reading of the script reignited his passion for making the film. And now he’s dedicating himself to what we imagine will be a proper theater run. Good news for those who loved The Hateful Eight. Bad news for anyone hoping for Kill Bill 3.
