The Hollywood Reporter story is frustratingly short on verifiable details. The idea of Tom Cruise finally teaming up with one of the best directors of his generation is floated in one sentence and then shot down in another. Pitt reprising his role as Booth seems like a real thing, and the writers of the article are emphatic that Olivia Wilde met with Tarantino about playing a fictionalized version of legendary film critic Pauline Kael (who was arguably the defining voice of 1970s New Hollywood during her tenure at The New Yorker).

Paul Walter Hauser was rumored at one point to be the favorite to play the title character, but The Hollywood Reporter story shoots this down too. There also was talk about John Travolta, Margot Robbie, and Jamie Foxx reuniting with Tarantino. Maybe this would’ve been his opportunity to do “The Vega Brothers” and that “Django Unchained” sequel he teased?

Evidently, according to THR, Tarantino’s sudden abandonment of the project left the California Film Commission flat-footed. Again, I am not giving up on “The Movie Critic.” He’s been noodling on this for a while, and I find it hard to believe he’ll close out his career on a “Kill Bill” sequel or his proposed “Star Trek” film. I do think he’s wedded to the “Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood” universe, so whatever he does next will likely exist in that world.