Deadline reports that Quentin Tarantino has shelved plans to direct his next film, The Hateful Eight, after a first draft of its script was leaked in Hollywood. Instead, the director will move on to direct another project, publish a written version of The Hateful Eight, and then "maybe revisit the prospect of a movie in the next five years."

Tarantino told Deadline that he was "very, very depressed" to discover the script for his ensemble western had been leaked, having first learned about the breach when his agent started receiving calls from other agents who were keen to pitch their clients for roles in the movie. The director reportedly gave the script to six people, including actors Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, and Bruce Dern. Tarantino told Deadline he suspects that Dern's representatives, Creative Artists Agency, disseminated the script. In response, CAA "vehemently denied" the accusation, and noted that Tarantino could've leaked the script himself.

The director had planned to start filming the movie this winter. He will instead switch his focus to another project, about which he's "full of piss and vinegar." But the change of plans doesn't mean The Hateful Eight is lost: Tarantino called the movie his "baby," and says "if the muse calls me later to do it, we'll do it." For now, he plans to publish the story in some form before he makes the film, but also suggests that his decision may not be entirely final. "I could totally change my mind," he told Deadline. "I own the fucking thing."