Margot Robbie is entering final talks to play Sharon Tate in Quentin Tarantino’s ninth feature film, Once Upon Time in Hollywood. Not to be confused with Tarantino-pal Robert Rodriguez’s Once Upon a Time in Mexico, this movie is set in Los Angeles in the late 1960’s, and it follows a cast of characters whose lives are affected as Charles Manson’s cult gains notoriety for a series of murders and assaults.
According to Tarantino himself, the movie “takes place in Los Angeles in 1969, at the height of hippy Hollywood. The two lead characters are Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio), former star of western TV series, and his longtime stunt double, Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt). Both are struggling to make it in a Hollywood they don’t recognize anymore. But Rick has a very famous next-door neighbor…Sharon Tate.”
As noted by IndieWire, Tate was married to controversial filmmaker Roman Polanski at the time of her murder, though the role of Polanski has yet to be cast. There is also no sign of casting for Manson himself, nor is it clear if Manson will even be in the film. He may simply be sinister figure on the peripheral of the events that take place. Rumors abound that Tom Cruise may have a role in the film, though if Pitt, DiCaprio, and Cruise are all the same film, it may capsize under too much star power.
The fledgling film has already made headlines for a Variety of reasons aside from the dark subject matter, including Tarantino’s mistreatment of women (particularly Uma Thurman on the set of Kill Bill), and Tarantino’s friendship and close business ties with disgraced producer Harvey Weinstein.
If Robbie does take the role, this will be the first time she has worked with Tarantino. She was nominated for Best Actress at the 90th Academy Awards for her performance as Tonya Harding in I, Tonya, and can next be seen in Terminal, Dreamland, and Mary Queen of Scots.
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