A South African design studio has created a striking series of posters that reimagine characters from Quentin Tarantino’s 1994 cult classic Pulp Fiction as vintage cigarette card illustrations.
The studio, MUTI, debuted the collection to mark the film’s 20th anniversary, drawing inspiration from early 20th-century cigarette cards—small collectible cards once found in cigarette packs. The posters evoke the worn, nostalgic aesthetic of these historical collectibles, blending it with the bold personalities of Tarantino’s iconic cast.
The minimalist artwork notably recalls the style of Chester Gould, the creator of the Dick Tracy comic strip that first appeared in 1931. MUTI’s designs evoke a sense of faded pulp fiction memorabilia, imagining the characters as if they belonged to a forgotten set of promotional items—perhaps tucked inside a pack of Tarantino’s fictional Red Apple cigarettes.
This creative choice aligns with Pulp Fiction’s own celebration of pop culture, as the film is known for its homage to pulp novels, B-movies, exploitation films, and grindhouse cinema. The posters capture this spirit by transforming characters such as Marsellus Wallace, Jules Winnfield, Mia Wallace, and Winston Wolfe into stylized, graphic figures reminiscent of vintage pulp and noir iconography.
Samuel L. Jackson’s Jules Winnfield, for example, is depicted with a symmetrical, almost hieroglyphic style, emphasizing his distinctive Jheri curl and evoking the aesthetic of 1970s blaxploitation heroes. Uma Thurman’s Mia Wallace is rendered with sharp geometric shapes, echoing the femme fatales of classic comic strips. Meanwhile, Winston Wolfe’s expression is portrayed with subtle menace, capturing the cool, calculated demeanor famously embodied by Harvey Keitel.
The series’ vintage textures and muted tones lend the modern characters a retro glow, as if Pulp Fiction had been part of popular culture’s visual landscape for decades before its actual release. This meta approach underscores Tarantino’s own method of repurposing forgotten cultural fragments into something fresh and enduring.
MUTI’s posters offer a compelling blend of nostalgia and innovation, celebrating Pulp Fiction’s enduring influence while creatively reinterpreting its characters through a unique, historical lens.
