In Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, most of the story takes place in 1969.
The film follows actor Rick Dalton and his stunt double and friend Cliff Booth during a changing period in Hollywood. Its central events occur in Los Angeles during February and August 1969, with the August section intersecting with the story of actress Sharon Tate and members of the Manson Family.
The 1969 setting lets Tarantino combine real historical figures with fictional characters and an alternate-history ending. Rick’s career anxiety reflects the transition from traditional studio westerns to a new television and film culture, while the Hollywood locations recreate the city’s streets, restaurants, and studios of the period.
Some viewers associate the film with 1968 because of the broader cultural changes surrounding it, but the movie’s major events are specifically placed in 1969. Its title and setting therefore point to the final year of the decade rather than a general 1960s backdrop.