Paul Dano Responds to Quentin Tarantino Torching Him as an Actor

Paul Dano is speaking out about Quentin Tarantino dissing him as an actor, saying he’s grateful his colleagues stuck up for him.

Dano addressed the Tarantino issue Wednesday while he and his fellow cast members from the movie “Little Miss Sunshine” celebrated the 20th Anniversary of its release at the Sundance Film Festival.

Responding to the droves of people defending him online, the actor told Variety, “That was really nice. I was also incredibly grateful that the world spoke up for me so I didn’t have to.”

Last December, Tarantino torched Dano during an interview with Brett Easton Ellis on “The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast.”

The director said Dano’s performance in “There Will Be Blood,” caused it to drop from the number 1 or 2 position on his list of the greatest films to the 5th spot. Tarantino said Dano was the “flaw” in the movie, calling him “weak sauce” and a “weak sister.”

Ellis asked Tarantino if he ever liked Dano in any film project, and Quentin replied, “I don’t care for him.” Then Tarantino slightly changed his tune about Dano’s acting in “There Will Be Blood,” stating, “I’m not saying [Dano]’s giving a terrible performance. I’m saying he’s giving a non-entity performance.”

At the time … many in the movie industry threw their support behind Dano, namely Ethan Hawke, Ben Stiller, Simu Liu and Reese Witherspoon, calling him a brilliant and gifted actor.