Quentin Tarantino has teased that his ninth film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, about the Charles Manson Family murders that rocked the showbiz world in the 1960s, is “probably the closest” to his 1994 cult hit Pulp Fiction.

The 55-year-old director will reunite with Leornardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt in the film based on the murder of actress Sharon Tate and three others. Tarantino likened Leo and Pitt’s pairing as “the most exciting star dynamic since Paul Newman and Robert Redford”.

“It’s very hush hush and top secret. But I can tell you that Once Upon a Time in Hollywood takes place in 1969, at the height of the counterculture, hippy revolution and the height of new Hollywood. Street by street, block by block, we’ll transform Los Angeles into the Hollywood of 1969,” Tarantino said, according to The Hollywood Reporter. DiCaprio, who plays an ageing, out-of-work actor in the film, added he is pumped up to collaborate with Pitt. “It’s hard to speak about a film that we haven’t done yet, but I’m incredibly excited... To work with Brad Pitt, and I think he’s going to transport us,” he said.

Pitt will play long-time stunt double to Leo’s character. Margot Robbie is being eyed for the role of Tate in the film expected to release on August 19, 2019, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the murders.