Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Cliff Booth’ Sequel Leaves Sony as Tom Rothman Shares Insights

Sony Pictures chairman Tom Rothman is celebrating the tremendous success of ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day,’ yet one significant Hollywood project remains a lost opportunity for the studio: Quentin Tarantino’s follow-up to ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.’

The upcoming film, now titled ‘The Adventures of Cliff Booth,’ will see the return of Brad Pitt’s Oscar-winning character from Tarantino’s 2019 film. However, unlike its predecessor, the sequel will not be released by Sony. Instead, it is being developed at Netflix with David Fincher directing from a screenplay penned by Tarantino.

In a recent interview discussing Sony’s recent achievements, Rothman addressed the reasons behind the studio losing the project and expressed his disappointment. Initially, Sony was set to produce the film when Tarantino was attached to direct, but the filmmaker ultimately decided against taking on the project himself.

Rothman noted that Tarantino’s trust in Fincher significantly altered the film’s trajectory. Since Fincher has an exclusive deal with Netflix, the project naturally transitioned to the streaming platform instead of remaining with Sony.

“Because David Fincher is exclusive to Netflix. We were going to make the movie when Quentin was directing it, but he decided that he didn’t want to do it and changed course,” Rothman stated, as shared in the interview.

The Sony executive added that Tarantino’s confidence in Fincher was crucial to the decision. “The only other person that he was comfortable directing his script was David Fincher, and David Fincher was exclusive to Netflix, so we were not going to stand in anybody’s way,” Rothman explained.

While Sony ultimately accepted the situation, Rothman admitted that losing the project was frustrating. “Yes,” he replied when asked if he was disappointed that Sony would not be producing the sequel.

This marks a rare scenario for Tarantino, who is typically known for directing his own films. However, the filmmaker has previously stated that he was not keen on making the sequel as his final directorial project, expressing a desire for his last film to take him into uncharted territory.

Fincher’s involvement facilitated this transition, with Tarantino remaining on board as writer and producer. The project also reunites Fincher with Brad Pitt after their collaborations on films such as ‘Se7en,’ ‘Fight Club,’ and ‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.’

‘The Adventures of Cliff Booth’ will continue the narrative of Pitt’s character from ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,’ although plot details are largely under wraps. The film follows Cliff after the events of the original movie, introducing new characters in a fresh chapter of his Hollywood journey.

The project has become one of Netflix’s most anticipated upcoming films, combining the talents of three major figures in modern filmmaking: Tarantino, Fincher, and Pitt. For Sony, however, it represents a rare “what could have been” moment after the studio initially launched the first film in theaters.

As Sony continues to celebrate the success of ‘Spider-Man: Brand New Day,’ Rothman appears focused on the future of theatrical releases, even while acknowledging that some significant projects will occasionally shift elsewhere. Although the studio may have missed out on Cliff Booth’s next adventure, fans can still look forward to Tarantino’s world continuing under Fincher’s direction.

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