Quentin Tarantino Announces That 'Bounty Law' Star Rick Dalton Has Passed Away At The Age Of 90
Everyone's favorite lawman TV actor who just so happened to incinerate a psychotic intruder with his 14 Fists of McCluskey flamethrower has passed on. Rick Dalton. The man, the myth, the legend. Dead at 90, per Quentin Tarantino (h/t Deadline). We knew this day was coming, but Rick Dalton was the type of man you figured would live forever.
Best known as Jake Cahill in the small-screen staple Bounty Law and the star of The Fireman trilogy, Dalton's career and life were portrayed by Leonardo DiCaprio in the 2019 semi-biographical/mostly-nonfiction film Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Quentin Tarantino served as the writer-director of the acclaimed masterpiece, which depicted the events that'd set the stage for Dalton's comeback and eventual Fireman-fueled resurgence. That trilogy began about 10 years after the story we saw in OUATIH.
Leo was seen out in the wild today struggling to process the news, indubitably broken up about Dalton's death. The two had formed a strong bond when Dalton served as a creative consultant on Tarantino's latest pic.
No disrespect to Rick Dalton's memory, but we need a quick aside here. As our very own Trent astutely observed — this is Barstool SPORTS after all, is it not? — speculation is swirling that Dalton's spiritual essence somehow transferred into Jordan Spieth in a Sheev Palpatine-esque maneuver (at least temporarily):
Unclear if this implied Dalton-Spieth reincarnation is 100% accurate as Jordo did not blame his errant tee shot on those damn dirty hippies. And yes. I had to plug in the highlight separately because of a "media disabled" situation. It's almost like golf would be more exciting if shit like this was allowed. Sorry for the profanity, Rick. RIP sir. Will regretfully have to edit this later if the PGA hardos come after this TikToker. But seriously Rick. If you're out there looking down on us — we should be so lucky — don't take this the wrong way. Please.
OK so we're well past the point where at least a handful of whatever-the-opposite-of-eagle-eyed-or-semi-intelligent readers will make a beeline for the comments section and/or social media to tell me how much of a moron I am for thinking Rick Dalton is a real person. Rick Dalton is real if you believe he's real. Between Leo's interesting countenance and Spieth's vocal inflections on this very day, the signs are obvious that Rick is out there. Somewhere, in an alternate universe, he is a real person.
You might be wondering, "How many edibles did you take this afternoon?" To which I would answer zero. It's a slow, rainy Saturday in the greater New York City area and this story of Rick Dalton's death is blowing up all over the Twitters and such. Had to cover it. Can't not. He's a titan in the entertainment industry and deserves this special attention.
Here's where we get to some exciting IRL subplots that could keep Rick Dalton's legacy alive. Tarantino has plans to make a five-episode Bounty Law limited series starring the Jake Cahill character — whether Leo returns to the role or not. This will probably be at least a couple years away as Tarantino prepares to shoot his 10th and presumably final silver screen effort.
If ye be interested, Tarantino went into tremendous detail about what happened to Rick Dalton post-OUATIH, in a 2021 interview with Jeff Goldsmith on his Q&A podcast. That beloved madman Quentin wrote a whole-ass history of Dalton's entire fictitious career.
You can't say one of the greatest filmmakers of our time doesn't go above and beyond to be thorough and deliver the best movies possible. That's why many of us are hoping he isn't, in fact, finished after 10.
…But hey, if we get a brand-new Bounty Law meta-reboot-throwback-Western masterminded by Tarantino, Rick Dalton's legacy will get a major boost, and all of us Quentin stans will be undeniable winners. Now inject some Bounty Law teaser trailer goodness into your bloodstream — plus more!