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SYFY WIRE michelle yeoh

Michelle Yeoh says Quentin Tarantino had a pretty legit reason to not cast her in 'Kill Bill'

He's got a point.

By Vanessa Armstrong
Michelle Yeoh

It’s no secret that Michelle Yeoh is a formidable force of nature. The actor’s fighting prowess is obvious in many of her performances, including her role as Emperor Philippa Georgiou in Star Trek: Discovery as well as this year’s Everything Everywhere All At Once, where she plays many versions of the struggling Evelyn, including one with superior fighting skills.  

Yeoh has other roles on the horizon, such as her part in the Avatar films and The Witcher: Blood Origin, that will no doubt highlight her excellence in literally kicking ass. Her skills are so impressive, in fact, that in an interview in the September 2022 issue of Town & Country, Yeoh shared how director Quentin Tarantino — who was and is a big fan of hers — ultimately decided not to have her in his samurai epic, Kill Bill, because she was just too good. 

“He’s very smart,” Yeoh told Town & Country when asked why she wasn’t in the film. “He said, ‘Who would believe that Uma Thurman could kick your ass?’”

Yeoh makes a very valid point — there are few actors who could outfight her, and Tarantino was well-familiar with her work when he was making Kill Bill. Luckily for us, we’ve seen and will be able to see Yeoh in many other amazing films and shows. 

Yeoh's Everything Everywhere All At Once co-star Jamie Lee Curtis speaks for all of us when she told Town & Country about why she admired her. “Her facility to switch between comedy and martial arts and then real emotion," said Curtis. “I challenge anybody to come up with a better performance.”

Looking for some action and adventure? Peacock has a slew of titles to get your heart rate up, including The Fast and the Furious, Ambulance, and Flashpoint.