Bruce Dern to Replace Late Burt Reynolds in Quentin Tarantino's 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood'

Burt Reynolds, Bruce Dern
Ernesto Di Stefano Photography/Getty Images for Bentonville Film Festival/Manny Hernandez

Tarantino has found someone to fill the icon's shoes after his passing.

One acting legend is stepping in to fill the shoes of another in Quentin Tarantino’s upcoming film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

Following Burt Reynolds’ death on Sept. 6, Bruce Dern has signed on to take over his role in the Oscar-winner’s sprawling historical drama, according to multiple sources.

Reynolds was slated to play George Spahn, the rancher whose land was overrun by Charles Manson and his followers in the late '60s. It was here where they plotted the infamous Tate-LaBianca murders.

Dern, who has collaborated with Tarantino on The Hateful Eight and Django Unchained, is a logical choice for the vacancy. Although the 82-year-old actor was on the shortlist of people who Tarantino suspected of leaking The Hateful Eight script, leading to controversy, it appears as though all is forgiven now.

Here’s the forthcoming film’s official logline: “Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time...in Hollywood visits 1969 Los Angeles, where onetime TV star Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his longtime stunt double Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt) make their way in an industry they hardly recognize anymore. The ninth film from the writer-director features a large ensemble cast and multiple storylines in a tribute to the final moments of Hollywood’s golden age.”

Besides DiCaprio and Pitt, the film will also features performances from Al Pacino, Timothy Olyphant, Kurt Russell, Austin Butler, Emile Hirsch, Tim Roth, Lena Dunham, Lorenza Izzo, Maya Hawke, Luke Perry, Rumer Willis, Michael Madsen, Scoot McNairy and Margot Robbie as Sharon Tate.

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