Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

**Once Upon a Time in Hollywood** is a 2019 film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. It stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, and Margot Robbie.

The film is set in 1969 Los Angeles where a fictional aging television actor and his stunt double and longtime friend navigate the changing Hollywood film industry.

## Plot

In 1969 Los Angeles, aging actor Rick Dalton, former star of a 1950s Western television series *Bounty Law*, laments to his best friend and stunt double Cliff Booth that his career is over. Booth, a war veteran who lives in a trailer with his pit bull Brandy, drives Dalton around town and relies on him for work due to rumors that Booth killed his wife. Meanwhile, actress Sharon Tate and her husband Roman Polanski have moved into the house next door to Dalton's. Dalton dreams of befriending the couple In order to restore his status. Later that night Tate and others attend a party at the Playboy Mansion.

Booth fixes Dalton's TV antenna and reminisces on a sparring match he had on the set of *The Green Hornet* with Bruce Lee (though it is unclear if the event actually happened). Charles Manson stops by Polanski and Tate's house looking for record producer Terry Melcher, who used to live there, but is turned away by Tate's friend Jay Sebring. Booth later picks up a young hitchhiker in Dalton's car, dropping her off at Spahn Movie Ranch. She tries to persuade him to stay, but Booth is suspicious of the large number of hippies squatting on the property, worrying that owner George Spahn (Booth's former employer) is being taken advantage of. He insists on checking on Spahn despite Lynette Fromme's objections; Spahn dismisses Booth's fears. Returning to his car, Booth discovers that Steve Grogan has slashed his front tire; Booth brutally beats Grogan and forces him to change the tire. One of the women goes to fetch Tex Watson, but Booth is already driving away by the time Watson arrives. Tate goes for a walk and decides to go to the theater to watch herself in *The Wrecking Crew*.

Meanwhile, Dalton lands the role of a villain in a new series called *Lancer*. He strikes up a conversation with his young co-star Trudi, a method actress. During the scene, he struggles with his lines due to his alcoholism and later has an emotional breakdown in his trailer. He returns and gives a powerful performance that impresses the director and Trudi, bolstering his confidence. After watching Dalton's performance as a guest star on an episode of *The F.B.I.*, casting agent Marvin Schwarzs offers Dalton the opportunity to shoot a Spaghetti Western in Rome. Dalton, who considers Spaghetti Westerns to be the bottom of the entertainment totem pole, reluctantly agrees, bringing Booth with him for the six-month stint in Rome, where Dalton films several movies and gets married.

Upon returning to Los Angeles, Dalton informs Booth he can no longer afford his services, and they agree to go their separate ways. They go out for one last drink and return to Dalton's home, where Booth smokes an acid-laced cigarette and takes Brandy for a walk. Meanwhile, Tex Watson, Susan Atkins, Linda Kasabian, and Patricia Krenwinkel arrive in preparation to murder everyone in Tate's house. Dalton hears the car outside and comes out, ordering them to leave. They initially drive off, but then Atkins hatches a plan to return and kill Dalton. A nervous Kasabian deserts the group as the remaining three proceed with their plan. Upon entering the house, Watson encounters Booth, who recognizes the trio from Spahn Ranch, making them nervous. In the ensuing fight, Booth and Brandy manage to kill Krenwinkel and Watson and severely injure Atkins, who stumbles outside into the pool. This alarms Dalton, who had been floating there listening to music, oblivious to the commotion inside. Dalton climbs out of the pool and retrieves a flamethrower he'd kept from a previous film shoot and burns Atkins to death. Booth is taken to the hospital for his non-fatal injuries, as Dalton strikes up a conversation with Jay Sebring next door, who invites Dalton up to Tate's house for drinks.

## Cast

* Leonardo DiCaprio as Rick Dalton
* Brad Pitt as Cliff Booth
* Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate
* Emile Hirsch as Jay Sebring
* Timothy Olyphant as James Stacy
* Julia Butters as Trudi Fraser
* Bruce Dern as George Spahn
* Mike Moh as Bruce Lee
* Luke Perry as Wayne Maunder
* Damian Lewis as Steve McQueen
* Al Pacino as Marvin Schwarz
* Brenda Vaccaro as Mary Alice Schwarz
* Kurt Russell as Randy
* Zoë Bell as Janet
* Lorenza Izzo as Francesca Cappucci
* Rebecca Gayheart
* Michael Madsen as Sheriff Hackett on Bounty Law
* Martin Kove as a Sheriff on Bounty Law
* James Remar as Ugly Owl Hoot, a villain on Bounty Law
* Clifton Collins Jr. as Ernesto the Mexican Vaquero on Lancer
* Scoot McNairy as Business Bob Gilbert, a villain on Lancer
* Marco Rodriguez as the bartender on Lancer
* Samantha Robinson as Abigail Folger
* Rafał Zawierucha as Roman Polanski
* Nicholas Hammond as Sam Wanamaker
* Costa Ronin as Wojciech Frykowski
* Rumer Willis as Joanna Pettet
* Dreama Walker as Connie Stevens
* Rachel Redleaf as Cass Elliot
* Rebecca Rittenhouse as Michelle Phillips
* Ramón Franco as Ruben, a movie theater manager
* Clu Gulager as a book store owner
* Kate Berlant as a movie theater ticket booth attendant
* Quentin Tarantino as the director of the Red Apple Cigarettes ad

The Manson Family:

* Damon Herriman as Charles Manson
* Margaret Qualley as Pussycat
* Austin Butler as Charles "Tex" Watson
* Dakota Fanning as Lynette "Squeaky" Fromme
* Madisen Beaty as Patricia Krenwinkel
* Victoria Pedretti as Leslie Van Houten
* Lena Dunham as Catherine Share
* Mikey Madison as Susan "Sadie" Atkins
* Maya Hawke as Linda Kasabian
* James Landry Hebert as Steve Grogan
* Dallas Jay Hunter as Delilah
* Dyani Del Castillo as Pebbles
* Parker Love Bowling as Tadpole
* Kansas Bowling as Sandra Good
* Sydney Sweeney as Dianne Lake
* Harley Quinn Smith as Froggie
* Cassidy Hice as Sundance
* Ruby Rose Skotchdopole as Butterfly
* Josephine Valentina Clark as Catherine Gillies
* Danielle Harris as Angel