28 Years Ago, Quentin Tarantino Was Stopped From Directing An Episode Of X-Files

Quentin Tarantino is no stranger to TV, and among his many unmade projects is one episode of The X-Files. Quentin Tarantino has found great success on the big screen, where he has shown his mastery of writing dialogue, complex characters, and stories that always include a dose of violence and blood. There’s always a lot of anticipation and rumors about what will be Tarantino’s next movie, more so now that he’s preparing his 10th and final movie, but it’s worth noting that he has also left his mark on TV.

Tarantino’s career began with short films, but he found great success with his feature directorial debut, Reservoir Dogs, in 1992, followed by Pulp Fiction in 1994. Before jumping into Jackie Brown in 1997, Tarantino made his TV debut in ER, and he could have continued his TV career right away, as he had another project lined up. This project was for one of the biggest TV shows of the decade and one of the best TV shows of all time, but ultimately, Tarantino had to drop out of it, though he later made a triumphant return to TV.

Quentin Tarantino Was Set To Direct The X-Files’ “Never Again”

“Never Again” Is The 13th Episode Of The X-Files Season 4

Back in 1996, Quentin Tarantino was set to join The X-Files season 4 with the episode “Never Again.” Written by Glen Morgan and James Wong, “Never Again” aired in February 1997, and it was a stand-alone plot, thus not connected to the show’s wider mythology. “Never Again” saw Dana Scully (Gillian Anderson) leaving town on a solo mission while Fox Mulder (David Duchovny) went on vacation. Scully’s mission led her to meet Ed Jerse (Rodney Rowland), a recently divorced man who got a tattoo of a pin-up girl with the words “Never Again.”

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However, since getting the tattoo, Ed had been controlled by it and driven to kill women, as the woman in the tattoo didn’t want to share him with anyone. “Never Again” was directed by Rob Bowman, but the episode was originally going to be directed by Tarantino. The filmmaker was in-between projects at the time, but his film career had nothing to do with his not directing this X-Files episode.

Tarantino was actually prevented by the Directors Guild of America, as he wasn’t a member and failed to join the union after working on ER, for which he was given a waiver (via Daily News). This violated an agreement made between Tarantino and the DGA, and so he couldn’t direct this X-Files episode. Given the story and tone of “Never Again”, it would have greatly benefited from Tarantino’s visual style, but the episode received positive reviews as it is.

Quentin Tarantino Had Previously Directed 1 Episode Of ER

Quentin Tarantino Directed ER’s “Motherhood”

As mentioned above, Tarantino’s first venture into the world of TV was in the medical drama ER. Tarantino directed the episode “Motherhood”, the 24th episode of ER’s first season. “Motherhood” saw Susan (Sherry Stringfield) delivering her sister’s baby, and she later learned from their mother that she would have to help her sister with her baby. Meanwhile, John Carter (Noah Wyle) learned that his application for a surgical internship was rejected, Peter Benton (Eriq La Salle) learned that his mother had passed away, and Doug Ross (George Clooney) tried to decide whether to move in with his girlfriend or not.

“Motherhood” proved that Tarantino can also make good TV and was the beginning of his path in this area.

“Motherhood” received positive reviews from critics, who found that it brought out a different side of Tarantino that hadn’t been seen in his movies so far, while some others found that, although he gave an edge to the show, his episode didn’t really stand out. Still, “Motherhood” proved that Tarantino can also make good TV and was the beginning of his path in this area.

Quentin Tarantino Returned To TV With One Of CSI’s Best Episodes

Quentin Tarantino Left His Mark On The CSI Franchise

Quentin Tarantino was prevented from joining The X-Files, but he returned to TV in 2005 with one of the best episodes of the CSI franchise. Tarantino directed the two-part episode “Grave Danger” from CSI: Crime Scene Investigation’s season 5. The episode follows the graveyard-shift team joining forces again after one of them is kidnapped from a crime scene and held for a million-dollar ransom, but the team learns there’s a lot more to the kidnapping. “Grave Danger” is regarded as one of CSI’s best episodes, cementing Quentin Tarantino’s legacy on TV.

Source: Daily News.