Quentin Tarantino his next effort, Tarantino paid homage to the blaxploitation films of the 1970s with "Jackie Brown" (1997), an adaptation of Elmore Leonard's novel "Rum Punch". "Kill Bill", a highly stylized "revenge flick" in the cinematic traditions of Kung fu films, Japanese martial arts, Spaghetti Westerns and Italian horror, followed six years later, and was released as two films: "" in 2003 and "" in 2004. Tarantino next directed "Death Proof" in 2007, as part of a double feature with friend Robert Rodriguez, under the collective title "Grindhouse". His long-postponed "Inglourious Basterds", which tells the fictional alternate history story of two
Quentin Tarantino martial arts), "Jidaigeki" (Japanese period cinema), spaghetti Westerns and Italian horror. It was originally set for a single theatrical release, but its 4-hour plus running time prompted Tarantino to divide it into two movies. "" was released in late 2003 and "" was released in 2004. It was based on a character called The Bride and a plot that he and "Kill Bill"s lead actress Uma Thurman had developed during the making of "Pulp Fiction". In 2000, he played the role of Deacon in the Adam Sandler comedy "Little Nicky". From 2002–2004, Tarantino portrayed villain McKenas Cole in the ABC