Jerod Harris/Getty ImagesQuentin Tarantino has a bone to pick with the Mouse.
In an interview on Sirius XM's The Howard Stern Show on Wednesday, the Oscar-winning director accuses Walt Disney Studios of using its, well, force, to get the ArcLight chain to screen Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the most anticipated movie of the year, at its Cinerama Dome, a large, popular Los Angeles theater, during a time period he says was originally reserved for his new film, The Hateful Eight. Reps for Disney and ArcLight had no immediate comment.
"I just learned something the other day," Tarantino told Howard Stern. "It was real bad news and it really f--king pissed me off and I think I want to voice it right now. Basically, and I'm not talking about the whole country, I'm talking about one theater in particular. We were gonna play at the Cinerama Dome on the 25th, we were gonna open there and play there exclusively for two weeks and Star Wars was gonna play the two weeks before us."
Tarantino alleges Disney officials told ArcLight reps that if the Cinerama Dome did not screen Star Wars: The Force Awakens during the entire holiday season, Disney would not allow the movie chain to show the film at any of its theaters.
"They've got the biggest movie in the world. We're talking about one effing theater," Tarantino said. They are going out of their way to f--k me."
Star Wars: The Force Awakens, the first in the franchise in 10 years and the start of a new trilogy, is set for release on Dec. 18. The Hateful Eight has a limited theatrical release on Dec. 25 and hits more theaters on Jan. 1.
More than $100 million worth of advance tickets to Star Wars: The Force Awakens have been sold, Variety reported on Tuesday.
Tarantino told Stern Disney's actions were "vindictive" and "mean" and constituted "extortion."
"Look, there's a few movies coming out around the same time—there's Sisters, there's Joy, there's a Mark Wahlberg-Will Ferrell movie [Daddy's Home]," he said. "None of us are any serious competition to Star Wars."
Tarantino also noted that he has "made a lot of money for the Disney corporation," referring to when Disney owned Tarantino told Stern referring to the days when Disney owned Miramax, which was the distributor for his hit movies Pulp Fiction and the Kill Bill series.
"I love J.J.!" Tarantino added, referring to director J.J. Abrams. "I'm not saying this to Star Wars people. It's the Disney people!"
Tarantino had worked with Abrams when he guest starred on his show Alias as McKenas Cole in 2002 and 2004.
Tarantino had made some negative comments about Star Wars in 2012, when Disney bought the franchise's studio, George Lucas' Lucasfilm.
When asked if was interested in the new trilogy, Tarantino told EW, "I could so care less...No, sorry. Especially if Disney's going to do it. I'm not interested in the Simon West version of Star Wars."