Once Upon a Time in Hollywood reunited Quentin Tarantino with some of his frequent collaborators, among them Kurt Russell, who was key in the making of the movie. After exploring an alternate version of historical events in Inglourious Basterds, Quentin Tarantino decided to explore another “what if?” scenario in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Set in 1960s Los Angeles, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood introduced the audience to actor Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his best friend and stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt), who struggled to remain relevant as Hollywood’s golden age came to an end.

While Rick and Cliff did their best to find jobs and maintain their reputation (though in Cliff’s case, to fix his reputation), Once Upon a Time in Hollywood also took a look at Sharon Tate’s (Margot Robbie) life, following her around Hollywood alongside her best friend, Jay Sebring (Emile Hirsch). Once Upon a Time in Hollywood offered an interesting look at Hollywood in the 1960s, and to achieve an authentic and realistic look and feel, Tarantino received a lot of help, and one unexpected source of knowledge was Kurt Russell, who not only played a small role in the movie but was also key in making it feel as if they were truly living in 1969.

Kurt Russell Helped Once Upon A Time in Hollywood Feel Authentic

Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood

Kurt Russell had a dual role in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood as stunt coordinator Randy Miller and as the movie’s narrator, but he had another role behind-the-scenes. Speaking to EW in 2019 while promoting Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Tarantino shared how Kurt Russell was key in making the movie feel as authentic as possible as Russell was already working in Hollywood in the 1960s. Tarantino explained that he had the chance to talk to Burt Reynolds (who was originally going to play George Spahn, but passed away before filming began) and Bruce Dern about life in the 1960s, but Russell brought a different perspective as he was younger than them in the 1960s.

In addition to that, Russell is the son of Western character actor Bing Russell, so he knows what life in Hollywood was like for Western actors, and he worked with a variety of popular actors from that time. Kurt Russell’s acting career began in 1962 with small roles in the TV shows Dennis the Menace and The Dick Powell Show, and he made his big screen debut the following year with an uncredited cameo in It Happened at the World’s Fair. In 1966, Russell signed a ten-year contract with The Walt Disney Company, becoming the studio’s top star of the 1970s, so much so that Walt Disney said he predicted “a great acting future for him”.

By 1969, Russell had starred in Disney’s Follow Me, Boys!, The Horse in the Gray Flannel Suit, Guns in the Heather, The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes, and appeared in an episode of Lost in Space, so he definitely has a clear idea of what life in Hollywood in the late 1960s was like, and he was able to share those experiences with Tarantino for the benefit of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Was Kurt Russell’s Once Upon A Time in Hollywood Character Based On A Real Person?

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Kurt Russell as Randy Miller

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood has a mix of fictional characters and characters based on real-life people, but Russell’s character falls into the former category. In Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, Randy Miller is the husband of stunt coordinator Janet Miller (Zoë Bell), and while Janet seems to be based on Bell herself, Randy isn’t based on a real-life person. However, Randy Miller is a reference to Tarantino’s Death Proof, where Kurt Russell played Stuntman Mike, and Bell played a fictionalized version of herself.

Source: EW.