He is an outspoken and accomplished director who has been called out for his questionable caricature of a fallen Hollywood icon.
And now Bruce Lee's daughter Shannon Lee is responding directly to Quentin Tarantino, after the Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood auteur again defended his portrayal of her martial arts master father in his Oscar-winning 2019 film.
In an open letter published by The Hollywood Reporter on Friday, Shannon, 52, made her feelings quite clear, writing that she is 'really f**king tired of white men in Hollywood trying to tell me who Bruce Lee was.'
Speaking out: Bruce Lee's daughter Shannon Lee is responding directly to Quentin Tarantino, after the auteur again defended his portrayal of her martial arts master father in Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood; Shannon seen here in 2019
'Why does Quentin Tarantino speak like he knew Bruce Lee and hated him? It seems weird given he never met Bruce Lee, right?' Shannon began the column, going on to note Tarantino's many stylistic touches over the years that are owed to the kung-fu genre and action film tropes in general that were established by her legendary father.
'As you already know, the portrayal of Bruce Lee in Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood by Mr. Tarantino, in my opinion, was inaccurate and unnecessary to say the least,' she later wrote, going on to add: 'I’m really f**king tired of white men in Hollywood trying to tell me who Bruce Lee was.
'I’m tired of hearing from white men in Hollywood that he was arrogant and an a**hole when they have no idea and cannot fathom what it might have taken to get work in 1960s and ’70s Hollywood as a Chinese man with (God forbid) an accent, or to try to express an opinion on a set as a perceived foreigner and person of color,' she continued.
'Why does Quentin Tarantino speak like he knew Bruce Lee and hated him? It seems weird given he never met Bruce Lee, right?' Shannon began the column; she was responding to points Tarantino brought up earlier in the week with Joe Rogan on his podcast
'I’m tired of white men in Hollywood mistaking his confidence, passion and skill for hubris and therefore finding it necessary to marginalize him and his contributions. I’m tired of white men in Hollywood finding it too challenging to believe that Bruce Lee might have really been good at what he did and maybe even knew how to do it better than them.'
Lee added later on: 'I’m tired of white men in Hollywood barely footnoting the impact he had on the action film genre and fight choreography, or the proliferation of and interest in martial arts he sparked globally, or the number of people and communities he continues to inspire and touch with his performances, philosophies, teachings and practices while casually downplaying how his accomplishments have lifted spirits and become a source of pride for Asian Americans, communities of color and people around the world, and how he accomplished all of this by the age of 32.
'And while we’re at it, I’m tired of being told that he wasn’t American (he was born in San Francisco),' she continued.
'I’m really f**king tired of white men in Hollywood trying to tell me who Bruce Lee was': Shannon Lee squares off against Quentin Tarantino over his defense of how he portrayed her father Bruce Lee in 2019's Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
The kerfuffle began, of course, as the result of a brief scene in the revisionist historical drama that saw principal character Cliff Booth (played by Brad Pitt in the role that won him a Best Supporting Actor Oscar) squaring off with and easily beating Lee, as portrayed by actor Mike Moh.
And although the issue first came up well over two years ago when the film premiered, it has once again come to the forefront now that Tarantino, 58, is
