Kill Bill Vol. 1 split the critics

According to the Hollywood Reporter, speculation increased after Tarantino was named president of the Cannes jury.

But with the film due out in the UK and the US on 16 April and Italy on 23 April, a Cannes opening now seems to be unlikely.

Tarantino has called his appointment to the Cannes jury "a magnificent honour".

The director said it was the crowning achievement of a lifetime spent in cinematic obsession.

The nine-member jury of French and international film-makers, actors, writers and directors who will join Tarantino in his new role have yet to be announced.

Cult figure

It is 12 years since Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs appeared at Cannes in an Out of Competition slot and 10 years after his later film Pulp Fiction won the festival's top prize, the Palme d'Or.

The film-maker succeeds last year's jury president, Patrice Chereau, who directed Hanif Kureshi's Intimacy in 2001.

Tarantino fans are eagerly awaiting the release of Kill Bill Vol. 2, the second part of his martial arts epic.

He is known as an avid film expert who draws on many obscure movie references for his own work, including French new-wave director Jean-Luc Godard to B-grade horror films.

He also has a knack of resurrecting the careers of film stars whose careers have dried up, including John Travolta in Pulp Fiction and David Carradine in Kill Bill.

Kill Bill Vol 1 was nominated for five Bafta awards this year, including Uma Thurman for best actress, but it failed to win any prizes.