David Fincher Cut 60 Pages From Quentin Tarantino’s ‘Cliff Booth’ Script

David Fincher has revealed that he cut approximately 60 pages from Quentin Tarantino’s original screenplay for The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth, describing the first draft as “essentially two movies”.

Speaking to Empire alongside Tarantino, Fincher explained that the initial screenplay ran to 230 pages before he reshaped it for the upcoming sequel to Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood. The resulting film, starring Brad Pitt as the returning Hollywood stuntman, has a reported runtime of approximately two hours and 20 minutes.

“Somewhere in there was the Venn diagram of what Brad wanted to do, what I want to do, what Quentin wanted to do,” Fincher explained, describing how the filmmakers identified the elements they wanted to focus on. The project marks a collaboration between two acclaimed directors who have previously worked with Pitt separately but have never made a film together.

Set in 1977, eight years after the events of the original film, The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth follows Pitt’s character as he works as a Hollywood fixer, navigating the criminal underbelly of the entertainment industry.

Tarantino has also suggested that the sequel will differ significantly in tone from its predecessor. While Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood was conceived as a more relaxed, character-driven experience, he described the new screenplay as having the feel of an Elmore Leonard crime novel.

“I don’t think of it as a hangout movie at all,” Tarantino said, adding that the story focuses on a different kind of narrative.

Fincher, meanwhile, was drawn to the interactions between characters and the world of 1970s Hollywood, rather than simply the mechanics of the plot.

The Further Mis-Adventures of Cliff Booth will receive an exclusive IMAX theatrical run beginning on 25 November 2026, before arriving on Netflix on 23 December.

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Megan Hilborne

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Megan is a freelance writer and film critic based in Portsmouth. She graduated with a degree in Film in 2020 and has continued her study of the medium in her day-to-day life. She takes particular interest in indie, horror, feminist and queer cinema. Some of her writing credits include an interview with Academy Award winner Sean Baker and Time’s 2025 Most Influential People inductee Mo Abudu.

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