20 Things You Somehow Missed In Kill Bill Volume 2
12. Esteban Was Played By Michael Parks
Later in the film, Beatrix heads to Mexico and meets up with a retired pimp, Esteban Vihaio, who helps track Bill down to a hotel.
And if you couldn't quite put your finger on why the actor playing Esteban looked familiar, that's because the part was played by legendary character actor Michael Parks, albeit while wearing brownface.
Parks previously appeared in Kill Bill Volume 1 as a totally different character, Texas Ranger Earl McGraw - sans brownface, thankfully - but won this second role through pure happenstance.
The great Ricardo Montalban was originally hired to play Esteban, but when he couldn't attend a readthrough of the script during pre-production, Parks agreed to read in his place.
Ultimately Tarantino liked Parks' performance enough that he cast him in the part instead, and Montalban sadly never got the chance to work with the director.