Filmmaker Quentin Tarantino hit back at actor Rosanna Arquette after she criticized his use of the N-word in several of his films, including the 1994 film "Pulp Fiction."
Arquette raised the issue during an interview with The Sunday Times, where she reflected on her brief role in the film and voiced strong objections to Tarantino's repeated use of the racial slur in his work.
"Personally, I am over the use of the N-word — I hate it," Arquette said in the interview. "I cannot stand that he [Tarantino] has been given a hall pass. It's not art, it's just racist and creepy."
Tarantino responded Monday in a letter addressed directly to the actor, accusing her of disrespecting both him and the film years after participating in it.
"I hope the publicity you're getting from 132 different media outlets writing your name and printing your picture was worth disrespecting me and a film I remember quite clearly you were thrilled to be a part of?" Tarantino wrote in the letter, published by Variety.
"Do you feel this way now? Very possibly," Tarantino continued. "But after I gave you a job, and you took the money, to trash it for what I suspect is very cynical reasons, shows a decided lack of class, no less honor."
Arquette appeared in "Pulp Fiction" as Jody, the wife of drug dealer Lance, played by Eric Stoltz. Her character shares scenes with John Travolta's Vincent Vega. Although the role was small, it has remained part of the film's enduring cult legacy.
In the interview, Arquette also said she did not receive a share of the film's profits after its release.
"I'm the only person who didn't get a back end [a share of the takings]. Everybody made money except me," she told the Times.
She attributed the situation to producer Harvey Weinstein.
Weinstein, once one of Hollywood's most powerful producers, has since been sentenced to prison for a series of sexual assaults. He has denied all wrongdoing.
Arquette was also among the actresses interviewed for a 2017 New Yorker investigation that exposed decades of alleged misconduct by Weinstein.
Criticism of Tarantino's use of the racial slur has surfaced repeatedly over the years.
The word is used roughly 20 times in "Pulp Fiction," and critics frequently cite the director's 2012 film "Django Unchained," in which the slur appears nearly 110 times.
Other actors who have worked closely with Tarantino have defended the dialogue in his films.
Jamie Foxx, who starred in "Django Unchained," and Samuel L. Jackson, a frequent collaborator who has appeared in nearly every Tarantino film, including "Pulp Fiction," have both publicly supported the filmmaker's approach to writing historically and culturally specific dialogue.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.