Quentin Tarantino's frequent collaborator Rosanna Arquette has called out the filmmaker's frequent use of the N-word in his films. The actress, who worked with him in "Pulp Fiction" and is known for films like Martin Scorsese's "After Hours", shared in a conversation with The Times that, while she acknowledged the classic status of the film, he gets a pass for the inclusion of the racial slur in his work.
“It’s iconic, a great film on a lot of levels. But personally, I am over the use of the N-word — I hate it. I cannot stand that he [Tarantino] has been given a hall pass. It’s not art, it’s just racist and creepy,” said Arquette.
This is not the first time that Tarantino has been criticised for the same. Filmmaker Spike Lee has often expressed his disapproval, asking at one point if Tarantino wants to be named an "honorary black man," and has referred to both "Jackie Brown" and "Django Unchained" as examples.
However, Samuel L. Jackson, who worked with Tarantino multiple times, beginning with "Pulp Fiction" and culminating in "The Hateful Fight", has often defended his writing choices on numerous occasions, adding that it was tiring to explain this every time, and that it made sense from the context of the settings and the background of the characters in Tarantino's world.
“Every time someone wants an example of overuse of the N-word, they go to Quentin — it’s unfair. He’s just telling the story, and the characters do talk like that. When [’12 Years a Slave’ director] Steve McQueen does it, it’s art. He’s an artiste. Quentin’s just a popcorn filmmaker,” Jackson once told the LA Times.
