On a recent episode of the Reel Blend Podcast, director Quentin Tarantino has revealed the three actors who were considered to play the iconic villain Bill in Kill Bill. Although the role ultimately went to David Carradine, Tarantino discussed that the role was originally planned for Warren Beatty and Bruce Willis would have been the third choice if Carradine had passed.
“I wrote [the character of] Bill for Warren Beatty and it ended up not working out,” Tarantino said. “And then I cast David Carradine, and kind of rewrote it for David Carradine. Bruce [Willis] would have been my third choice… When I read the original version of Kill Bill, it kind of cracks me up now, because it’s the Warren Beatty version.”
Tarantino explained in the interview that he wouldn’t have had to do much rewriting of the part had he gone with Willis and how the Pulp Fiction actor could have played “that evil James Bond kind of character.”
“When I look at that original version, you know, Bill was a little bit more of an evil James Bond type,” he continued. “Okay? Rather than the Bondian villain, he was more like an evil bond. And he kind of had this, he had a Warren Beatty kind of quality about him. And frankly, to tell you the truth, I probably wouldn’t have to had rewritten it that much if I had cast Bruce in it. Bruce could have actually played that evil James Bond kind of character and I would have just leaned into his personality maybe just a little bit more. A little less Cristal. A little bit more Coors, all right. A little less champagne, a little more beer.”
SEE ALSO: Quentin Tarantino says Kill Bill Vol. 3 is “definitely in the cards”
Do you think Bruce Willis could have played a memorable Bill or was David Carradine the right choice? Let us know in the comments below or tweet us @flickeringmyth…