When Pulp Fiction reached theaters in 1994, Quentin Tarantino's twisting Los Angeles crime story had already won the Palme d'Or at the Cannes Film Festival, where a jury led by Clint Eastwood chose it over favored rivals. It went on to earn seven Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, and won for Best Original Screenplay. The Library of Congress later selected it for preservation as culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant. Three decades on, many of its stars are still busy in front of the camera and behind it. Here is where they went next.
John Travolta
John Travolta played hit man Vincent Vega in Pulp Fiction, a role that earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and that Wikipedia credits with reviving his career. His first Oscar nomination had come for Saturday Night Fever (1977). He later played attorney Robert Shapiro in The People v. O. J. Simpson (2016), which brought an Emmy nomination, and he was nominated again for the web series Die Hart. In May 2026 he returned to Cannes for the premiere of his directorial debut, Propeller One-Way Night Coach, which is based on his own 1997 children's novel. Just before the screening, artistic director Thierry Frémaux surprised him with an honorary Palme d'Or. "This is beyond the Oscar!" Travolta said, according to the Associated Press. The film came out on Apple TV on May 29, 2026.
Samuel L. Jackson
Samuel L. Jackson played Jules Winnfield, a hit man working for crime boss Marsellus Wallace, and the role earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Wikipedia says Tarantino was won over by Jackson's second audition, a reading of the final diner scene. Jackson went on to play Nick Fury across Marvel's films, returning in the Disney+ series Secret Invasion and the film The Marvels in 2023. The Academy named him an Honorary Award recipient, and the award was presented at the 2022 Governors Awards. He returned to Broadway that same year as Doaker Charles in a revival of The Piano Lesson, earning a Tony nomination, and played the role again in the 2024 Netflix film. In 2026 it was announced that his planned Tulsa King spin-off would be renamed Frisco King.
Uma Thurman
Uma Thurman played Mia Wallace, the wife of crime boss Marsellus Wallace. Her image dominated the film's promotional material, and the role brought her an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. She worked with Quentin Tarantino again as the Bride in Kill Bill: Volume 1 and Volume 2 (2003–2004). In 2023 she played fictional U.S. President Ellen Claremont in the Amazon Prime Video romantic comedy Red, White & Royal Blue, and she starred alongside Samuel L. Jackson in the thriller The Kill Room. She returned with Charlize Theron in The Old Guard 2 (2025) and joined the series Dexter: Resurrection, which began in 2025. In 2020, scientists named a newly described fringe-toed lizard from southwest Arizona, Uma thurmanae, after her.
Christopher Walken
Christopher Walken played Captain Koons, a U.S. Air Force veteran of the Vietnam War who gives young Butch his late father's prized gold watch. Walken had already won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for The Deer Hunter (1978), and he was nominated again for Catch Me If You Can (2002). In the 2020s he found new audiences on television. He played Frank in the British comedy The Outlaws, starting in 2021, and Burt Goodman in the Apple TV+ series Severance, which earned him a 2022 Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series. He also played Emperor Shaddam IV in Dune: Part Two (2024). In October 2023 he made a cameo on Saturday Night Live, his first appearance on the show in 15 years.
Tim Roth
English actor Tim Roth played Ringo, the robber his partner calls "Pumpkin." He had used an American accent in Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs but spoke in his natural London accent for Pulp Fiction. The following year his performance in Rob Roy (1995) won him a BAFTA Award and earned an Academy Award nomination. He went on to play Cal Lightman in the Fox series Lie to Me (2009–2011) and Emil Blonsky, the Abomination, in Marvel's The Incredible Hulk (2008). He returned to that role in Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (2021) and the Disney+ series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law (2022). He later appeared in the Australian drama Last King of the Cross (2023) and starred in the British thriller Tornado (2025).
Eric Stoltz
Eric Stoltz played Lance, the drug dealer Vincent turns to in a crisis, and the role earned him an Independent Spirit Award nomination for Best Supporting Male. He had already been nominated for a Golden Globe for playing Rocky Dennis in Mask (1985), and his other films include Some Kind of Wonderful (1987) and Say Anything… (1989). He later played inventor Daniel Graystone in the science fiction series Caprica. He also built a substantial career as a television director, directing 12 episodes of Glee. Starting in 2014 he was the producing director of the CBS drama Madam Secretary. The next year he became one of its executive producers, alongside Morgan Freeman and Barbara Hall. He directed more than ten episodes and appeared on the show as Will Adams.
Sources
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pulp_Fiction
- https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/cannes-flashback-pulp-fiction-shocked-by-taking-palme-dor-1994-1208070
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Travolta
- https://wtop.com/world/2026/05/john-travolta-surprised-with-honorary-palme-dor-at-cannes-film-festival/
- https://www.ksl.com/article/51498320/john-travolta-surprised-with-cannes-award-ahead-of-directorial-debut
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Travolta_cropped.jpg
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Travolta_in_2024_(cropped).jpg
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_L._Jackson
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Samuel_L_Jackson_at_San_Diego_ComicCon_2008_(cropped).jpg
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Samuel_L._Jackson_attending_the_World_premier_of_%22Argylle%22_in_London_,_January_2024_(cropped).jpg
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uma_Thurman
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Uma_Thurman_-_Cannes_2000_(cropped).jpg
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Uma_Thurman_2014_(cropped).jpg
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Walken
- https://www.televisionacademy.com/shows/severance
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Christopher_Walken_-_1984_(cropped).jpg
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Christopher_Walken_receiving_r7al_2018_Honorary_Award.jpg
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Roth
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tim_Roth_cropped.jpg
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Tim_Roth_Cannes_2021.jpg
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eric_Stoltz
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eric_Stoltz-2009_cropped.jpg
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Eric_Stoltz_(47645926471).jpg
