Quentin Tarantino promised 'No house, No vacation' to his mother after one childhood incident. 'You will never see one penny'

Becoming a famous filmmaker often comes with the benefit to give anything and everything to family, but Quentin Tarantino has drawn a firm line when it comes to sharing his wealth with his mother. The Pulp Fiction director says he has kept a promise he made as a 12-year-old boy after his mother questioned his ambitions as a writer. Even after winning two Oscars and building a celebrated career in Hollywood, he has not bought her a house or a car.

Tarantino explained the reason behind his decision a few years ago during an appearance on The Moment podcast, hosted by writer Brian Koppelman. What began as an argument about schoolwork, he recalled, became a moment he never forgot.

Comment that led to this decision

Tarantino said his mother, Connie Zastoupil, was frustrated with his academic performance because he spent time writing screenplays instead of concentrating on his studies. During one argument, she made a sarcastic comment about his plans to become a writer.


Recalling her words, he said, “Oh, and by the way, this little ‘writing career,’ with the finger quotes and everything. This little ‘writing career’ that you’re doing? That is over.”

The comment led a young Tarantino to decide that if he ever made it as a writer, his mother would not benefit financially from his success.

“When she said that to me in that sarcastic way, I was in my head and I go, ‘OK lady, when I become a successful writer, you will never see one penny from my success. There will be no house for you. There’s no vacation for you, no Elvis Cadillac for mommy. You get nothing because you said that,’” he recalled.

Decades later, Tarantino said he had honoured that promise. He clarified, however, that he had helped his mother when she ran into a problem with the US Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

“I helped her out of a jam with the IRS,” he said, while maintaining that he had never bought her a house or a Cadillac.

Mother's response to the controversy

Tarantino's comments drew a lot attention but his mother Zastoupil, meanwhile, responded in a statement to USA Today saying that she still supports her son and was proud of his achievements.

“Regarding my son Quentin – I support him, I’m proud of him and love him and his growing new family,” she said.

She also recalled the joy of attending his wedding and receiving news of the birth of her grandson, Leo. Zastoupil added that podcast comments could circulate online without their full context and said she did not wish to participate in what she called a “salacious transactional media frenzy”.

How Tarantino turned his passion into a career

Tarantino's determination to pursue writing eventually led him to become one of Hollywood's best-known directors. He won Academy Awards for Best Original Screenplay for Pulp Fiction and Django Unchained, with other notable films including Reservoir Dogs and Kill Bill.

His path into the industry was unconventional. He left school as a teenager, worked at a cinema and later spent years at the California video rental store Video Archives, where he watched films and developed his knowledge of cinema.