However, according to members of the Family, the murders were not committed to start Helter Skelter but as copycat murders of Gary Hinman, to convince police his killer was still at large. Bobby Beausoleil was in jail, charged with the murder. The Family was attempting to get him released. According to Jay Sebring's protege and business partner Jim Markham, the murders were about a drug deal gone bad, not a race war. He believes Manson was at Tate's house the day before the murders to sell drugs to Sebring and Voytek Frykowski, which resulted in the two beating Manson up. In his interview with Truman Capote, Beausoleil said, "They burned people on dope deals. Sharon Tate and that gang."
Tarantino discovered the centerpiece for the work in 2009 while filming a movie with an actor that had the same stunt double for 20 years. Even though there was nothing but a small bit for the stuntman to do, Tarantino was asked to use him, and he agreed. The relationship fascinated Tarantino and inspired him to make a film about Hollywood. Tarantino said that while the stuntman may have been a perfect double for the actor years earlier, at the time he had come to meet them, "this was maybe the last or second-to-last thing they'd be doing together".
More InfoIn January 2018, DiCaprio signed on, taking a pay cut to collaborate with Tarantino again. Al Pacino was being considered for a role. On February 28, 2018, the film was titled Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, with Pitt cast in the role Cruise was also up for. DiCaprio and Pitt were each paid $10 million. In March 2018, Robbie, who had expressed interest in working with Tarantino, signed to co-star as Sharon Tate, while Zoë Bell confirmed she would appear. In April 2018, Jessica Lange was in talks to play Mary Alice Schwarzs, but dropped out and Brenda Vaccaro replaced her. In May 2018, Burt Reynolds, Tim Roth, Kurt Russell, and Michael Madsen joined the cast. Timothy Olyphant was also cast. In June 2018, Damian Lewis, Luke Perry, Emile Hirsch, Dakota Fanning, Clifton Collins Jr., Keith Jefferson, Nicholas Hammond, Pacino, and Scoot McNairy joined the cast. Spencer Garrett, James Remar, Brenda Vaccaro, and Mike Moh were announced in July. In August 2018, Damon Herriman as Charles Manson, and Lena Dunham, Austin Butler, Danny Strong, Rafał Zawierucha, Rumer Willis, Dreama Walker, and Margaret Qualley were cast.
More InfoThe scenes involving the Tate–Polanski house were not filmed at Cielo Drive, the winding street where the 3,200 square-foot house once stood. The original house was razed in 1994 and replaced with a mansion nearly six-times the size. Scenes involving the Tate-Polanski house were filmed at three different locations around Los Angeles: one for the interior scenes, one for the scenes showing the exterior of the old house, and a Universal City location for the many scenes depicting the iconic cul-de-sac driveway.
More InfoMike Moh, who played Lee, said he was conflicted at first: "Bruce in my mind was literally a god. ... Bruce didn't always have the most affection for stuntmen; he didn't respect all of them." He stated, "Tarantino loves Bruce Lee; he reveres him." Brad Pitt objected to an extended version of the fight, stating, "It's Bruce Lee, man!" according to stunt coordinator Robert Alonzo. According to Lee's friend and The Green Hornet stuntman Gene LeBell, Lee had a reputation for "kicking the shit out of the stuntmen. They couldn't convince him that he could go easy and it would still look great on film." Lee biographer Matthew Polly stated, "Bruce was very famous for being very considerate of the people below him on film sets, particularly the stuntmen. ... So in this scene, Bruce Lee is essentially calling out a stuntman and getting him fired because he's the big star."
More InfoTarantino's directive was to turn Los Angeles of 2018 into Los Angeles of 1969 without CGI. For this, Tarantino tapped into previous collaborators for production: editor Fred Raskin, cinematographer Robert Richardson, sound editor Wylie Stateman and makeup artist Heba Thorisdottir. He also brought first-time collaborators, production designer Barbara Ling, based on her work in recreating historical settings in The Doors, and costume designer Arianne Phillips, who had a strong client list to her name including Tom Ford, James Mangold and Madonna.
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