Quentin Tarantino to Direct ‘The Hateful Eight’ Staged Reading

The story of Quentin Tarantino’s “The Hateful Eight” is still a bummer for fans anxious to see the film version, but those lucky enough to be in Los Angeles later this month can see the next best thing. Film Independent, the nonprofit organization behind the Independent Spirit Awards and the Los Angeles Film Festival, has announced the world premiere of a staged reading of the script directed by none other than Tarantino himself and featuring a cast of his choice (not yet named). The cast will likely remain secret until they appear on stage.

“The Hateful Eight” is a western by Tarantino and was intended as a follow-up to “Django Unchained,” but Tarantino pulled the plug on the project following a script leak by Gawker that’s lead to a much-publicized legal dispute between the two. 

The script focuses on a blizzard that diverts a stagecoach and traps a group of ruthless and highly suspicious characters together in a saloon. The group includes a pair of bounty hunters, a renegade Confederate soldier and a female prisoner.

Don’t uncross your fingers that it’ll still get made some day, but for now, this sounds like a pretty terrific event. The reading will take place on Thursday, April 24 at LACMA’s Bing Theater at 8:00 p.m., and will not be streamed or recorded. 

The $200 tickets go on sale at 5:00 pm on Wednesday, April 9 for Members of Film Independent, LACMA Film Club and the New York Times Film Club. Proceeds go to support Film Independent at LACMA, the year-round screening series curated by Elvis Mitchell and produced in partnership with the LA County Museum of Art.

Find more information here.