Matthew Lillard Says Support After Quentin Tarantino Dissed Him Was ‘Beautiful’ and ‘Like Living Through Your Own Wake’: ‘I Can’t Imagine a More Lovely Reaction’

Matthew Lillard told Entertainment Weekly that it was “beautiful” to see fans and industry names come to his support last year after Quentin Tarantino publicly dissed him along with fellow actors Paul Dano and Owen Wilson. During a viral interview on “The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast” last fall, Tarantino slammed Dano as “the weakest fucking actor in SAG” and added that “I don’t care for” Lillard or Wilson.

“It was like living through your own wake,” Lillard said about the resulting tributes to his career on social media that were posted to combat Tarantino’s comments. “All those R.I.P. emails or tweets and Instagram posts and TikToks, all of the things we see after somebody passes are so sweet. And the reality is I just got to live through all of it firsthand — alive and kicking! I can’t imagine a more lovely reaction to what happened.”

“It was crazy. I keep showing it to my wife to convince her that I am worthy, that people still like me,” Lillard added. “Nobody has to like me. Nobody has to like any actor out there, obviously. It’s personal preference. I am not everyone’s first choice, that is obvious, but to then have that kind of reaction was beautiful.”

Many of Lillard’s former Hollywood collaborators used social media to champion him after Tarantino’s comments went viral. Mike Flanagan, who directed the actor in “The Life of Chuck” and cast him in the upcoming “Carrie” series reboot, called Lillard the “the goddamn greatest.” James Gunn worked with Lillard on the “Scooby Doo” movies and called him “one of my favourite guys (and actors).” George Clooney even accepted a prize from AARP earlier this year and said that he “would be honoured to work with” any of the actors Tarantino dissed.

Dano similarly received widespread support from fans and industry colleagues. Speaking to Variety, Dano said “it was really nice” to see such a reaction and “I was also incredibly grateful that the world spoke up for me so I didn’t have to.”

Lillard originally weighed in on Tarantino’s comment while speaking at GalaxyCon in Columbus, Ohio. He said “who gives a shit” while also acknowledging that “it hurts your feelings. It fucking sucks. And you wouldn’t say that to Tom Cruise. You wouldn’t say that to somebody who’s a top-line actor in Hollywood.”