Terry Gilliam, now 84, had hoped to make one final film to crown his illustrious career — a project titled “Carnival at the End of Days,” featuring an impressive cast that included Johnny Depp, Jeff Bridges, Adam Driver, Jason Momoa, Tom Waits, Asa Butterfield, and Emma Laird.
Unfortunately, in a recurrence all too familiar in Gilliam’s career, the project fell apart just months before production was set to begin due to a lack of financing. Could it still happen? “It doesn’t look like it.”
In a new interview marking the 50th anniversary of “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” Gilliam sounded resigned about the project’s fate:
“I think that one is not gonna happen. This is probably the first time I publicly said that. So I’m a little worried about saying it — it probably will kill it […]”
He added, “In the independent world, you find so many interesting hustling people… They promise you the earth, and the earth doesn’t move,” suggesting he had parted ways with his Italian financing partners.
“Carnival at the End of Days” told the story of God (Bridges) deciding to wipe out humanity for destroying the planet — a “comedy,” as Gilliam dryly emphasized. The only character trying to save humanity is Satan (Depp), who realizes that without people, he’s out of a job — and for an eternal being, unemployment is a terrible fate. Satan enlists a group of young people and tries to convince God that they can be the new Adam (Butterfield) and Eve (Laird). “God still gets to wipe out humanity. It’s a comedy.”
It’s hard to admit, but given the current state of the film industry — where original, high-concept projects have become increasingly rare, especially those requiring sizable budgets from aging auteurs — it seems more and more likely that Gilliam has directed his final film. As creatively restless as he remains, the system no longer seems built to support someone like him.
Many forget just how vital Gilliam’s cinematic voice once was, particularly during the height of his career when he battled Universal for the final cut of his 1985 masterpiece “Brazil.” Over the decades, he’s given audiences countless unforgettable films, including “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” and “12 Monkeys.”