Matthew Lillard 'felt like he'd died' after legendary director's criticism

Matthew Lillard appreciates the support he's received in the wake of Quentin Tarantino's recent criticism.

The 56-year-old actor was recently lambasted by Tarantino, 62 - but Matthew has been heartened by the subsequent outpouring of support for him.

The movie star told People: "It felt like I had died and was in heaven watching everyone send out their RIP tweets.

"I mean, it was really being a part of your own wake, sort of sitting there living through all the nice things people say after you die.

"So it was really, really lovely. It was something that happened that was who cares, really? But I spoke out. I mean, I got caught on a hot mic talking about it, and then it sort of went viral from there."

Matthew has actually received support from some of the biggest names in the movie business.

He said: "Everyone, from the people at the mall this weekend with my kids to George Clooney and James Gunn and Mike Flanagan ... I mean, people have sort of been really generous with telling me how much they loved me and liked my work."

Matthew previously addressed Tarantino's comments at GalaxyCon in Columbus, Ohio, in late 2025.

The actor said at the time: "Yeah, whatever. Who gives a s***.

"Listen, the point is that it hurts your feelings. It f****** sucks. And you wouldn't say that to Tom Cruise. You wouldn’t say that to somebody who’s a top-line actor in Hollywood."

Tarantino slammed Matthew during an appearance on The Bret Easton Ellis Podcast in 2025, when he was also critical of Paul Dano and Owen Wilson.

The legendary filmmaker made the remarks while discussing Dano’s performance in There Will Be Blood, the 2007 period drama.

Tarantino shared his list of the best movies of the 21st century, and ranked There Will Be Blood at number five, observing that it "would stand a better chance to be in number one or number two if it didn’t have a big giant flaw in it".

He added: "And the flaw is Paul Dano. Obviously, it’s supposed to be a two-hander, and it’s also so drastically obvious that it’s not a two-hander … He is weak sauce, man. He’s a weak sister."

Tarantino subsequently aimed some criticism at Owen Wilson and Matthew.

The acclaimed director said: "I’m not saying he’s giving a terrible performance. I’m saying he’s giving a non-entity [performance]. I don’t care for him. I don’t care for Owen Wilson, I don’t care for Matthew Lillard."