Quentin Tarantino's cinematographer Robert Richardson has confirmed that the director is now developing an entirely new final film, having abandoned his previously announced project, The Movie Critic. Richardson recently dropped out of this year's Michael Jackson biopic in order to reunite with Tarantino, and described the director as heading in a "fresh" direction, with the film expected to be announced next year. The news matters because Tarantino has long insisted he will retire from directing after his tenth feature, believing that film-makers lose their edge with age and wishing to protect his legacy.

Since his last directorial effort, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Tarantino has kept busy writing books, hosting podcasts, penning David Fincher's The Adventures of Cliff Booth, and preparing a play to be staged in London, but has not directed himself. The article also flags that Inglourious Basterds, the 2009 Second World War film Tarantino considers his masterpiece, is due to be removed from its streaming home, encouraging fans to watch it before it leaves. The piece's headline references the film's departure from Peacock, reportedly around 22 July 2026.