Over the past several years, Quentin Tarantino has made no secret of his plan to retire after directing his tenth movie. With this month’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood to be Tarantino’s ninth time directing – only because QT classes Kill Bill Vol. 1 and Kill Bill Vol. 2 as one elongated movie – the filmmaker has teased that he may call time on his career a little sooner than expected.

In a new interview with GQ Australia, Tarantino has revealed that, should Once Upon a Time in Hollywood do well, he may take an even earlier retirement than first planned

As the famed Reservoir Dogs helmer put it, “I think when it comes to theatrical movies, I’ve come to the end of the road. I see myself writing books and starting to write theatre, so I’ll still be creative. I just think I’ve given all I have to movies. If [Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is] really well received, maybe I won’t go to ten. Maybe I’ll stop right now. Maybe I’ll stop while I’m ahead. We’ll see.”

This isn't the first time Tarantino has talked about quitting while he’s ahead, with other interviews over the past five or six years seeing him state how he wanted to go out on top and to leave audiences wanting more.

Of course, on the flipside of this, it’s long been known that Quentin Tarantino is also in talks to put his own unique spin on Star Trek for Paramount Pictures. The script for that R-rated movie is already written and talks are at an advanced stage for Tarantino to officially sign on for the project.

It’s probably best to take Quentin’s comments with a pinch of salt for now, even if Once Upon a Time in Hollywood star Brad Pitt backed up the legitimacy of Tarantino’s claims in the very same interview.

Whether Tarantino does indeed make another movie or not, first and foremost is Once Upon a Time in Hollywood – in cinemas from July 26th.