Quentin Tarantino hints at his next project on ‘Tonight Show’

Quentin Tarantino is almost finished writing his next script, and it’s a western. But fans of “Django Unchained� shouldn’t get too worked up; Tarantino is quick to explain that it’s not a sequel to his hit from last year.

Filmmakers don’t usually go on late night TV to announce what their next project is going to be, but Tarantino obviously holds a special place in his heart for Jay Leno’s “Tonight Show.� The filmmaker was still working as a video clerk in Manhattan Beach and his first film, “Reservoir Dogs,� hadn’t yet been released when he made his very first talk show appearance with Leno in 1992.

Of the forthcoming western, Tarantino said he couldn’t divulge plot details, but he explained why he chose to do another film in the same genre as “Django.�

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“I had so much fun making ‘Django’ and I love westerns so much, that after I taught myself how to make one I thought, it’s like, wow OK, let me make another one now that I know what I’m doing,� Tarantino told Leno.

While that news may have been the big takeaway from Tarantino’s appearance, the biggest thing for the filmmaker was his new mug. He explained to Leno how, over the last 20 years, he’s collected mugs from his “Tonight Show� visits, starting with his first appearance and a mug marked “Guest 4.� Over the years, he’s charted his success in Hollywood by noting which guest number he is on his “Tonight Show� mug. For his final appearance with Leno, the host made Tarantino his own specially made mug, marked “Best Director.�

Will there be an extended discussion of the charms of coffee mugs in Tarantino’s next script? Fingers crossed.

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