Tarantino Revealed the Only One of His Characters He Truly Hates

Quentin Tarantino once revealed that out of all the characters he has created, there’s one he truly hated: Calvin Candie from Django Unchained. The director spoke about his feelings on the character in an episode of the ReelBlend podcast.

Tarantino is known for writing complex and often charming villains. Characters like Hans Landa from Inglourious Basterds and the Deadly Vipers from Kill Bill have a mix of evil and charisma that makes them memorable. Even Hans Landa, played by Christoph Waltz, had qualities that Tarantino could sympathize with.

But Calvin Candie, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, was different.

Tarantino explained, “I had a very weird relationship with the character he played, Calvin Candie. Because all my villains, every single villain I’ve ever created, I’ve always kind of had sympathy for. I always liked to some degree. Even Hans Landa. I could see his point of view. I like the guy. Bad, but I got it. Christoph makes him likable.”

Candie, however, was a character Tarantino couldn’t connect with. “Calvin Candie was different from the rest of them. I kind of detested the character. I really, really hated him. It was weird to write a character that I hated and kind of feel that way about the character. Because of that, I thought he was a substandard character.”

When Leonardo DiCaprio took on the role, Tarantino was surprised by the actor’s energy and dedication. “When Leo was really into it, I thought I was kind of buffaloing him a little bit,” he admitted. “I thought, ‘This character is not as good as he thinks it is.’ I’m not going to set him straight! (Laughs). I’m thinking, ‘He ain’t all that.’”

DiCaprio, however, transformed the character. With his performance, he brought depth and subtle ambiguity that wasn’t on the page. “To me, he was without ambiguity, which makes him a lesser character. But, we did a really good job of filling in everything. And Leo brought ambiguity to the piece,” Tarantino said.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments!