Quentin Tarantino Names David Fincher as His Favorite Director

Quentin Tarantino has always been generous with his praise, whether it’s for an obscure kung fu film or a classic swashbuckler from the 1930s. However, it’s quite rare to hear him rank a living filmmaker alongside himself, which is why his recent appearance on a talk show has sparked excitement among movie enthusiasts.

Tarantino made his long-awaited return to ‘The Graham Norton Show’ this week, marking his first visit in over ten years. He joined Colin Farrell, Ellen DeGeneres, and Gemma Chan on the BBC sofa, discussing a variety of topics, including his upcoming stage comedy ‘The Popinjay Cavalier’ and his Los Angeles theaters, the New Beverly and the Vista. He also shared that the script for his tenth and final film is complete.

The highlight of the show came when he was promoting ‘The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth’, the film he penned. When asked about his favorite director, Tarantino named David Fincher, adding a classic Tarantino twist by stating he’s the only exception. This compliment feels particularly impactful given the context of how the project came together.

Interestingly, Fincher wasn’t Tarantino’s initial choice. According to the interview, Tarantino was initially going to shelve the script until Brad Pitt suggested that he bring Fincher on board. Pitt has claimed that he was the one who encouraged Tarantino to share the scripts with Fincher.

Tarantino embraced the idea, and once Fincher read the screenplay and showed interest, the two met and instantly connected. In Tarantino’s words, their collaboration turned out to be a match made in heaven.

This isn’t the first time Tarantino has praised Fincher. During an episode of ‘The Church of Tarantino’ podcast in 2025, he stated that both of them are the best directors currently working, and that Fincher’s decision to adapt his work demonstrated a seriousness that deserved recognition. He also mentioned that he declined to direct the sequel himself because he felt unenthused, not wanting his final film to be a sequel.

Tarantino has previously referred to ‘The Social Network’ as the best film of the 2010s and hailed ‘Zodiac’ as a masterpiece. Last year, he expressed admiration for Fincher’s ‘The Killer’, calling it a masterpiece and one of the best films he had seen in the decade.

‘The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth’ is set in 1977, eight years after the events of ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’, featuring Cliff as a fixer operating in the shadows of the Hollywood studio system. Pitt reprises his Oscar-winning role, with a cast that includes Elizabeth Debicki, Scott Caan, Carla Gugino, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, and Peter Weller. Pitt also serves as a producer alongside Ceán Chaffin.

The film began shooting in July 2025 and completed principal photography in January 2026. It will have an exclusive two-week IMAX run starting November 25, before making its debut on Netflix on December 23.

Tarantino isn’t finished with Cliff Booth just yet. His novel ‘The Adventures of Cliff Booth’ is set to be released on December 8, allowing him to explore the character both on screen and in print simultaneously. He has also indicated that he will focus on the stage before returning to film, as he plans to complete the play first.

Regarding his tenth film, he expressed a desire to spend time with his family and enjoy life a bit before deciding what to do with the script. He even joked about his long-standing ten-film rule, treating it as a convenient loophole. For fans, this suggests that more Tarantino stories are on the horizon, even if directing isn’t his immediate priority.

The context of this praise is particularly intriguing. Page Six reported earlier this month that Fincher opted to leave his Netflix deal after disagreements with film chief Dan Lin over the budget for ‘Cliff Booth’. Lin has since been dismissed, according to reports, adding another layer to the narrative of a film that almost didn’t come to fruition.

Regardless, ‘Cliff Booth’ holds the unique distinction of being a Tarantino script directed by a filmmaker he regards as a peer. Few directors earn that level of trust, and none have been publicly celebrated quite like this.

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