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This whacko, rumoured Quentin Tarantino project is our favourite yet

Photo credit: Sony Pictures
Photo credit: Sony Pictures

From Digital Spy

From the hardboiled crime saga of Pulp Fiction to the rewritten fall of the Nazis in Inglorious Basterds, it’s safe to say Quentin Tarantino’s oeuvre is unique. Even now the director’s still surprising us with his upcoming take on the Charles Manson story and a possible R-rated Star Trek movie in the pipeline.

Which is why we were amazed at the news of his next potential project…

Django/Zorro crossover: What’s the deal?

Photo credit: Dynamite Entertainment
Photo credit: Dynamite Entertainment

According to some sources, the auteur has set his sights on developing a sequel to his 2012 blaxploitation flick Django Unchained.

What’s more, the film is said to be a Django and Zorro crossover, meaning the sword-wielding vigilante will make his debut in the Tarantino cinematic universe.

Told you it was out there.

Sources told Collider that Django/Zorro will be an adaptation of Tarantino’s graphic novel series of the same name. Comedian and writer Jerrod Carmichael is said to be working alongside the filmmaker to pen the script.

It’s not entirely clear whether Carmichael is writing the script on his own or whether it’s a collaborative effort between the two, but either way it’s looking possible the project will get the official greenlight in the months to come, as multiple sources have claimed that the film adaptation is under way.

It would certainly make sense from a financial perspective, as Django Unchained bagged two Oscars and remains the highest-grossing movie of the director’s career so far, taking $162 million domestically and $425 million global.

Django/Zorro crossover plot: What’s it all about?

Photo credit: The Weinstein Company/Columbia Pictures
Photo credit: The Weinstein Company/Columbia Pictures

We already have a good idea as to how the story will play out thanks to the mini-series which serves as a direct sequel to the original film.

Published by Dynamite Entertainment and DC Comics in 2014 and written by Tarantino and Eisner Award-winning comic book creator Matt Wagner, the narrative shows what the titular character, played on-screen by Jamie Foxx, gets up to years after the events of the film.

The Western hero ends up uniting with the legendary swordsman Diego de la Vega, aka Zorro, after meeting him by chance on the roads of the American south west. The pair embark on a battle to free the local indigenous people from enslavement.

There are some spectacular gimmicks in the books that would serve well if a film version were to be made, including one scene in which Django dons the mask of Zorro in his fight for justice.

Judging by the movie’s IMDb page, the premise will stick closely to the source material: “Several years after the events of Django Unchained, Django meets Don Diego de la Vega, the famed Zorro, and agrees to become his bodyguard on a mission to free the local indigenous population from slavery.”

Django/Zorro crossover cast: What about Zorro?

Photo credit: Columbia Pictures
Photo credit: Columbia Pictures

If and when the film hits theatres, it seems likely Foxx would reprise his role as Django, as well as Kerry Washington as Broomhilda, whose arc features heavily in the crossover series.

But just who could be cast as the iconic swordsman? It’s safe to assume Tarantino won’t merge his filmic universe with the already established Zorro films, which saw Antonio Banderas play the leading character.

The pair do have a relationship, having worked together on Robert Rodrigez’s 1995 neo-Western thriller Desperado. However, they’ll probably want to bring a fresh face to the role and give someone else a chance to depict the dashing vigilante.

Django/Zorro crossover release date: When’s it out?

Photo credit: Sony Pictures
Photo credit: Sony Pictures

We have yet to find out if the project is definitely happening, so it’s going to be a while until we’re close to a release date.

What we do know is this film has been a long time coming, with speculation first surfacing in the wake of the 2014 Sony hack, where numerous email exchanges between Tarantino and Sony boss-of-the-time Amy Pascal came to public view.

One of the emails read, “D/Z could be really fun!” before Pascal described the novel series as “super cool”.

If it does get the go-ahead, we’re looking at a bit of a wait. Following on from the July release of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Tarantino’s got the Hateful Eight Netflix miniseries to think about, not to mention whether or not he will grab the reins of a Star Trek film.

So sit tight and check this page on the reg as we’ll keep it updated as and when new details arrive.

Will this be Tarantino’s last film?

Photo credit: Miramax Films
Photo credit: Miramax Films

It’s well documented that Tarantino has a ten-feature retirement plan, which he confirmed more recently during the press tour for Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

There’s a major problem with this – the '60s-set film is his ninth feature. Meaning if the Django sequel comes next, it’ll be his last film. Can you imagine the creator of Pulp Fiction, Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill would want to end his career with a Zorro crossover?

Some have suggested that for this reason Tarantino might choose to simply produce the project rather than director it, as he did with Eli Roth’s Hostel films and a number of Rodriguez projects.

Then again, we can’t imagine the director’s last hurrah being a Star Trek sequel either, and yet it’s looking increasingly likely that he will go where many men (but no women yet) have gone before.

With this in mind, perhaps Tarantino will have to delay those retirement plans for a couple more years.


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