Pinocchio: A Puppet's Requiem
(spitting out a toothpick) You told a great lie, kid. But the best lies are the ones you tell yourself. Now, get on the horse. We’ve got a Whale to catch.
And somewhere, in a alternate universe, a puppet with a switchblade hand is walking into a bar, saying: "I’m gonna get real, real. That’s the ticket."
Did I do good, Papa? Did I tell a good lie?
"That scene is more horrific than anything in a slasher movie. It’s about the loss of self. Pinocchio watches his friend become an animal and scream for his mother. That’s body horror before Cronenberg."
While there is no official news that Quentin Tarantino is directing a movie, the idea remains a fascinating "what if" for cinema fans. Tarantino has expressed deep admiration for animated storytelling, famously calling Toy Story 3 a "masterpiece" and the "greatest conclusion to a trilogy".
Because del Toro and Tarantino are friends and mutual admirers, fans immediately speculated that del Toro had "stolen" or "inherited" the idea. In a 2022 interview with Variety , del Toro was asked directly about the Tarantino connection. He laughed and said:
Pinocchio places a small, heavy bag on the bar. It clinks. Gold. Or maybe just lead weights. Honest John eyes it.