Quentin Tarantino Almost Played The Martial Arts Master In Kill Bill Vol. 2
Quentin Tarantino has a knack for putting himself in his own movies in a creative fashion. Ranging from full-on roles to small cameos, he sometimes seems to have as much passion for acting as he does directing. Even before Tarantino made his directorial debut with "Reservoir Dogs," one of his first gigs in Hollywood was a cameo on "The Golden Girls," where he played an Elvis impersonator in a brief part of an episode. However, his first true role would come in "Reservoir Dogs," where he played the part of Mr. Brown and delivered that now-infamous monologue about Madonna's song "Like a Virgin." Mr. Brown would be killed off fairly early in the movie, but Tarantino's affinity for acting didn't stop there.
The director would go on to have minor roles in his other films, whether narrating or playing a background character of some kind. Tarantino was no stranger to acting, as he even had a role in the Robert Rodriguez film "From Dusk Till Dawn," co-starring with George Clooney. One cameo that Tarantino ended up having, as one of the Crazy 88 in "Kill Bill Vol. 1," was initially meant to be a more substantial role in "Kill Bill Vol. 2." However, the director decided to focus more on being behind the camera and would find an excellent replacement actor when it came time to film the scenes originally meant for him.
'It's taking everything that I have to direct'
Quentin Tarantino initially wished to play the role of Pai Mei in "Kill Bill Vol. 2." The character is depicted as a mythical sage with a temper who instructed significant characters in the film like Bill, Elle, and the Bride herself. Pai Mei is an eccentric and aggressive teacher, so it makes sense that Tarantino would want to bring such a unique character to life. In a 2004 interview with IGN, Tarantino described the preparation he had done to play the role, but how he eventually decided against playing the character so he could focus on making the film as good as it could be:
"I'd done all the training on him, and we shot for eight weeks in the House of Blue Leaves. And somewhere in the fifth week of shooting in the House of Blue Leaves, I was just like, 'You know, I'm just having, one, so much fun directing this. [...] And two, it's taking everything that I have to direct it, that all of a sudden I wasn't looking forward to playing Pai Mei anymore.'"
Tarantino's decision against playing the role was for the best. As it already stands, writing and directing the two "Kill Bill" films was a tall task and one that Tarantino had set out to do out of risk of failure. Unsurprisingly, his dedication to his role as a director was stronger than wanting to have some fun playing a martial arts character in his own movie. Thankfully, Tarantino found the perfect actor to bring Pai Mei to life.
A full circle moment
In the same interview, Quentin Tarantino described how he became discouraged at the thought of double duty in the film's production. Luckily, the director had the perfect solution in the form of actor Gordon Liu. The martial artist and actor had already starred in the first "Kill Bill" movie as Johnny Mo, the leader of the Crazy 88. With the talented actor already at his disposal, it became a clear choice for Tarantino:
"It seemed like a big pain in the ass [to play the character], and I just wanted to concentrate. And then I had Gordon Liu in the wings, who is just so perfect for it, and it was almost criminal not to cast him, so it became a very easy decision."
Gordon Liu's portrayal of Pai Mei is one of the best parts of "Kill Bill Vol. 2," and the energy and skill he brings to the character is something that I don't believe Tarantino could have matched at all. Moreover, Liu's inclusion as both Johnny Mo and Pai Mei harkens back to the 1978 film "The 36th Chamber of Shaolin," a martial arts epic starring Liu that "Kill Bill" clearly takes inspiration from, especially with its training sequences. Having Liu play an instructor in a movie that feels like a homage to one he starred in years ago is a wonderful full-circle moment that wouldn't have happened, had Tarantino gone through with playing Pai Mei.