'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood' premiers in Los Angeles

The director's ninth film premiered in the heart of Tinseltown, shutting down traffic on Hollywood Boulevard where fans and A-list stars like Chris Hemsworth and Britney Spears contributed to the frenzy, The Hollywood Reporter says.

Quentin Tarantino has called Once Upon a Time in Hollywood his love letter to 1969 Los Angeles, and on Monday night, the auteur delivered that heartfelt homage right in the heart of Tinseltown at the iconic TCL Chinese Theatre.

As the writer, director and producer of his ninth film, Tarantino's passions for the bygone era could be felt everywhere — from a faux studio soundstage that served as the backdrop for a blush pink carpet to an outdoor lounge dubbed the Pussycat Theatre where VIPs sipped cocktails at sundown waiting for stars Brad Pitt, Leonardo DiCaprio and Margot Robbie to arrive.

Inside, Tarantino's passions received the biggest spotlight on the big-screen, of course, where his fictionalized version of events traced the days of everyone from an aging actor named Rick Dalton and his stunt man Cliff Booth to Sharon Tate and the crazed Manson clan. Spoilers aside, perhaps the biggest surprise of the night was that Tarantino let the film and his cast do all the talking. He didn't work his way down the press line, nor did he give an introductory speech to start the film as is typical at major Hollywood premieres.