Quentin Tarantino's 'The Hateful Eight' to Star Robert Rodriguez-Endorsed Mexican Actor Demian Bichir, Channing Tatum, Samuel L. Jackson
"Pulp Fiction" and "Django Unchained" director Quentin Tarantino is bringing his signature touch to a post-Civil War western called "The Hateful Eight" -- and the story will unfold with the help of Oscar-nominated Mexican actor Demian Bichir, who he recently cast.
Bichir, who was nominated for an Oscar for "A Better Life," reportedly was recommended to Tarantino by renegade filmmaker and founder of El Rey Network Robert Rodriguez, who is also his longtime friend and collaborator. Also known his role as Detective Marco Ruiz in the FX drama, "The Bridge," Bichir also starred in Rodriguez's "Machete Kills."
Also on "The Hateful Eight" roster is Channing Tatum, who has been getting a lot of Oscar buzz for his role as a wrestler in "Foxcatcher" and is in the middle of producing "Magic Mike XXL." Also on the list are Samuel L. Jackson and Kurt Russell, who starred in Tarantino and Rodriguez's "Grindhouse" (2007).
Bichir is one of the eight in the "Bob" role. Tatum's role has not yet been disclosed. "The other seven roles in the post-Civil War western: Samuel L. Jackson as Major Marquis Warren, Kurt Russell as John 'The Hangman' Ruth, Jennifer Jason Leigh as Daisy Domergue, Walton Goggins as Chris Mannix, Tim Roth as Oswaldo Mobray, Michael Madsen as Joe Gage and Bruce Dern as General Sanford Smithers," according to The Weinstein Company.
"Any actor who jumps on board with one of Quentin's films is in for a wild and rewarding ride," said the film's executive producers, Bob and Harvey Weinstein, Variety reports.
Born to Mexican parents who adored theater -- Bichir's mother was an actress, and his father was a theater director -- the multi-faceted talent began acting at the young age of 3 at the Palace of Fine Arts in his native Mexico City. After appearing in several plays in Mexico and Los Angeles and eventually moving to New York and Los Angeles, it was an acting role in Mexico that truly catapulted Bichir's career.
He starred in "Hasta Morir," for which he won an Ariel (the Mexican equivalent of an Oscar). His career took off in Mexico. In 1991, his movie "Sexo, pudor y lágrimas" broke Mexican box-office records, becoming the No. 1 movie in the history of Mexican cinema.
Bichir made his American debut in a TV movie called "In the Time of the Butterflies" (2001), starring Salma Hayek. He later went on to play Emiliano Zapata in "Zapata: Amor en rebeldia" (2004), Fidel Castro in "Che: Part One" (2008) and "Che: Part Two" (2008). In 2012, as mentioned, he nabbed an Oscar nomination for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role in "A Better Life" (2011).
"The Hateful Eight" marks the first collaboration with Tarantino for Bichir, as well as Tatum and Jennifer Jason Leigh. It's Tarantino's eighth feature and the follow-up to "Django Unchained," which grossed over $425 million worldwide.
"The Hateful Eight," which is set in snowy Wyoming, reportedly "takes place after the Civil War and centers on a bounty hunter who has captured a female prisoner. On his way to turn her in, he crosses paths with other travelers. The flick follows the 'pitiless and mistrustful group' (which also includes a competing bounty hunter and a renegade Confederate soldier) after a blizzard traps them together in the middle of nowhere. Tensions arise, eventually leading to an explosive event."
Tarantino's "The Hateful Eight," in which the scenes will be depicted in 70 mm, has reportedly been in the works since his Oscar-winning "Django Unchained," but the project was derailed when the script leaked online, crushing Tarantino's spirits.
Despite the discouraging incident and potential legal ramifications, Tarantino decided to let it go and continued on with the film. The filmmaker who wears many hats -- but says he plans to hang up them all up and retire -- is most excited about the way the film will be shot.
"If we do our jobs right by making this film a 70 mm event, we will remind people why this is something you can't see on television and how this is an experience you can't have when you watch movies in your apartment, your man cave or your iPhone or iPad," Tarantino told Deadline.
"You'll see 24 frames per second play out, all these wonderfully painted pictures create the illusion of movement. I'm hoping it's going to stop the momentum of the digital stuff, and that people will hopefully go, 'Man, that is going to the movies, and that is worth saving, and we need to see more of that."
"The Hateful Eight" will be released in 2015.