Terry Gilliam

Terry Gilliam was born on 22 November 1940 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, the son of Beatrice (née Vance) and James Hall Gilliam. His father was a travelling salesman for Folgers before becoming a carpenter. Soon after, they moved to nearby Medicine Lake, Minnesota.{{cite book|title=The Pythons: Autobiography by the Pythons|year=2005|publisher=St. Martin's Griffin|location=New York|isbn=978-0-312-31145-2}} In 1952, the family moved to the Los Angeles neighborhood of Panorama City. Gilliam attended Birmingham High School. During high school, he began to avidly read Mad magazine, then edited by Harvey Kurtzman, which would later influence Gilliam's work.{{cite book|last1=Gilliam|first1=Terry|last2=Sterritt|first2=David| author-link2=David Sterritt|last3=Rhodes|first3=Lucille|title=Terry Gilliam: Interviews|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8eDE0hce0kEC&pg=PA65|access-date=7 October 2010|date=April 2004|publisher=Univ. Press of Mississippi|isbn=978-1-57806-624-7|page=67|quote=Mad comics inspired everything we ever did. (p. 67)}}

Gilliam graduated from Occidental College in 1962 with a Bachelor of Arts in political science.{{cite web |url=https://www.oxy.edu/news/terry-gilliam-62-honored-british-film-academy |title=Terry Gilliam '62 Honored by British Film Academy |work=Oxy |publisher=Occidental College |date=9 February 2009 |access-date=23 November 2014 |archive-date=5 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405152942/https://www.oxy.edu/news/terry-gilliam-62-honored-british-film-academy |url-status=dead }}

Gilliam began his career as an animator and strip cartoonist. One of his early photographic strips for the US magazine Help! featured future Python cast member John Cleese.{{cite web|url=https://www.lambiek.net/artists/g/gilliam_tery.htm|title=Terry Gilliam|website=lambiek.net}} When Help! folded, Gilliam went to Europe.[https://web.archive.org/web/20191007185528/https://believermag.com/an-interview-with-terry-gilliam/ "Salman Rushdie Talks with Terry Gilliam"]. The Believer. March 2003. Moving to England, he animated sequences for the children's series Do Not Adjust Your Set which he worked on from 1968 to 1969, and which also featured Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin.

{{See also|Monty Python|Monty Python's Flying Circus{{!}}Monty Python's Flying Circus}}

Gilliam was a member of Monty Python's Flying Circus from its outset, credited at first as an animator (his name was listed separately after the other five in the closing credits) and later as a full member. His cartoons linked the show's sketches together and defined the group's visual language in other media, such as LP and book covers and the title sequences of their films.{{cite news |title=Monty Python's Flying Circus |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/comedy/montypython/ |access-date=24 August 2019 |agency=BBC}} His animations mix his own art, characterised by soft gradients and odd, bulbous shapes, with backgrounds and moving cutouts from antique photographs, mostly from the Victorian era.

File:Monty Python Live 02-07-14 12 47 50 (14415365418).jpg" sketch during the Python reunion, Monty Python Live (Mostly), in 2014]]

File:Monty Python Live 02-07-14 12 27 13 (14415368570).jpg (played by Gilliam) flower arranging at the 2014 reunion. The Gumbys were part of the Pythons' satire on 1970s television condescendingly encouraging more involvement from the "man in the street".]]

He also appeared in several sketches, though he rarely had main roles and did considerably less acting in the sketches. Gilliam did, however, have some notable sketch roles, such as Cardinal Fang of the Spanish Inquisition; the bespectacled commenter who said, "I can't add anything to that!" in the sketch "Election Night Special"; Kevin Garibaldi, the brat on the couch shouting "I want more beans!" in the sketch "Most Awful Family in Britain 1974" (episode 45); the Screaming Queen in a cape and mask in "The Visitors"; and Percy Bysshe Shelley in "Ant Poetry Reading". More frequently, he played parts that no one else wanted to play, generally because they required a lot of makeup or uncomfortable costumes, such as a recurring knight in armour who ended sketches by walking on and hitting one of the other characters over the head with a plucked chicken. He also designed the covers of most of the Monty Python albums, including Another Monty Python Record, The Monty Python Matching Tie and Handkerchief, Monty Python Live at Drury Lane, and all of their later film soundtrack albums.Monty Python: Almost the Truth (Lawyers Cut), episode 3, 2009

{{anchor|Trilogy of Imagination}}

In 1975, Gilliam began his career as a director by co-directing Monty Python and the Holy Grail with Terry Jones. Gilliam was responsible for photography and also appeared as both Patsy and the Old Man from Scene 24, while Jones guided the actors' performances. It was the only Python film directed by Gilliam, though he continued to act in their subsequent projects.

As Python started to take longer breaks between projects following Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Gilliam became a solo filmmaker, building upon the experience he had acquired. In 1977, he directed his first film outside the group, Jabberwocky, also a comedy set in the Middle Ages. It featured Python member Michael Palin in the lead role, and was based on the poem of the same name. In 1978, he published Animations of Mortality, an illustrated, tongue-in-cheek, semi-autobiographical how-to guide to his animation techniques and the visual language in them.[https://www.gilliamdreams.com/tgbooks.htm Dreams: Terry Gilliam Books]{{Dead link|date=June 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}. Dreams: The Terry Gilliam Fanzine.

Gilliam served as art director on Monty Python's Life of Brian, Terry Jones having taken on sole directing duties. Gilliam made Time Bandits in 1981. Following directing the short film The Crimson Permanent Assurance, which opened showings of Monty Python's The Meaning of Life, Python effectively ceased working together, and Gilliam pursued his career as a filmmaker.

The "Trilogy of Imagination", written by Gilliam, about "the ages of man", consisted of Time Bandits (1981), Brazil (1985), and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988). All are about the "craziness of our awkwardly ordered society and the desire to escape it through whatever means possible."Matthews, Jack (1996). Dreaming Brazil. Essay accompanying the Criterion Collection DVD. All three films focus on these struggles and attempts to escape them through imagination: Time Bandits through the eyes of a child, Brazil through the eyes of a man in his thirties, and Munchausen through the eyes of an elderly man. In the summer of 1986, he cut ties with Arnon Milchan and 20th Century Fox and started directing Munchausen through his own new Prominent Films banner independently.{{Cite news|date=10 December 1986|title=Gilliam To Direct 'Munchhausen' For His Own Company|pages=7, 30|work=Variety}}

In the 1990s, Gilliam directed a trilogy of Americana: The Fisher King (1991), 12 Monkeys (1995), and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), which took place on North American soil and, while still surreal, had fewer fantastical plots than his previous trilogy.Pirie, Chris (2002). [https://www.gilliamdreams.com/cpirie02.htm "Gilliam the Snake Charmer"]. Imagine Magazine (backed up on Dreams by Phil Stubbs, used with permission.

File:Terry Gilliam at IFC Center 2006.jpg event on 4 October 2006]]

In 1999, Gilliam attempted to film The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, which was budgeted at US$32.1 million, making it among the highest-budgeted films to use only European financing; but in the first week of shooting, the actor playing Don Quixote (Jean Rochefort) suffered a herniated disc, and a flood severely damaged the set. The film was cancelled, resulting in an insurance claim of US$15 million.{{cite book |last=Ebert |first=Roger |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780740755385 |title=Roger Ebert's Movie Yearbook 2006 |date=November 2005 |publisher=Andrews McMeel Publishing |isbn=978-0-7407-5538-5 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780740755385/page/400 400]–1 |author-link=Roger Ebert |access-date=7 October 2010 |url-access=registration}} Despite the cancellation, the aborted project did yield the 2002 documentary Lost in La Mancha, produced from film from a second crew that had been hired by Gilliam to document the making of Quixote. After the cancellation, both Gilliam and the film's co-lead, Johnny Depp, wanted to revive the project. The insurance company involved in the failed first attempt withheld the rights to the screenplay for several years{{cite web |title=Dreams: The Man Who Killed Don Quixote |url=https://www.gilliamdreams.com/donqfact.htm |access-date=1 June 2011 |publisher=Smart.co.uk }}{{Dead link|date=June 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} with the production on hold until 2008.{{cite book |last1=Haen |first1=Theo d' |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=faGC5XeauTcC&pg=PA254 |title=International Don Quixote |last2=Dhondt |first2=Reindert |date=5 May 2009 |publisher=Rodopi |isbn=978-90-420-2583-7 |page=254 |access-date=7 October 2010}}{{cite news |author=Alica-Azania Jarvis |date=4 August 2008 |title=Pandora: Don Quixote Rides Again, Says Delighted Gilliam |work=The Independent |location=UK |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/pandora/pandora-don-quixote-rides-again-says-delighted-gilliam-884243.html |url-status=dead |access-date=4 August 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080819042752/http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/pandora/pandora-don-quixote-rides-again-says-delighted-gilliam-884243.html |archive-date=19 August 2008}}

Following the failure of The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, J. K. Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series and a fan of Gilliam's work, advocated for him to direct Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone in 2000, but Warner Bros. ultimately chose Chris Columbus for the job.[https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0000416/bio IMDb: Biography for Terry Gilliam]. Retrieved 22 April 2007. {{unreliable source?|date=September 2022}}

File:Terry Gilliam KVIFF.jpg, April 2006]]

In 2002, Gilliam directed a series of television advertisements called "Secret Tournament". Part of Nike's 2002 FIFA World Cup campaign, the advertisements feature a secret three-on-three tournament between the world's best football players, including Ronaldo, Ronaldinho and Thierry Henry, who are inside a huge tanker ship.{{cite web |date=24 July 2002 |title='The Secret Tournament' – the Nike World Cup 2002 Advert |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A776009 |access-date=1 June 2011 |publisher=BBC}} The advertisements are accompanied with a remixed version of the Elvis Presley song "A Little Less Conversation".{{cite news |date=16 June 2002 |title=Elvis Makes Chart History |work=BBC News World Edition |publisher=British Broadcasting Corporation |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/2048610.stm |access-date=29 June 2019}}

In 2005, Gilliam released The Brothers Grimm, followed later in the year by Tideland. In 2006, Gilliam made his debut as theatre director by directing the stage show Slava's Diabolo, created and staged by the Russian clown artist Slava Polunin. The show combined Polunin's clown style, characterised by deep nonverbal expression and interaction with the audience, with Gilliam's rich visuals and surrealistic imagery. The show premiered at the Noga Hall of the Gesher Theatre in Jaffa, Tel Aviv, Israel.

In January 2007, Gilliam announced that he had been working on a new project with his writing partner Charles McKeown. One day later, the fansite Dreams reported{{cite web|url=https://www.gilliamdreams.com/parnfact.htm |title=Dreams: The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus, a Terry Gilliam Film |publisher=Smart.co.uk |date=25 January 2008 |access-date=1 June 2011}} that the new project was titled The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus; the following October, Dreams confirmed that this would be Gilliam's next project and was slated to star Christopher Plummer and Tom Waits.{{Cite news |last = Stubbs |first = Phil |title = The Imaginarium of Dr Parnassus |publisher=Dreams |url = https://www.gilliamdreams.com/parnprev.htm |access-date =10 October 2007 }} Production began in December 2007 in London.{{Cite news |url=https://variety.com/2007/film/markets-festivals/gilliam-ledger-reteam-for-film-1117975156/ |title=Gilliam, Ledger Reteam for Film |work=Variety |date=31 October 2007 | access-date=30 December 2007 }} On 22 January 2008, production of the film was disrupted following the death of Heath Ledger in New York City. Variety reported that Ledger's involvement had been a "key factor" in the film's financing.{{Cite news| author=Dawtrey, Adam |url=https://variety.com/2008/film/news/parnassus-team-faces-dilemma-1117979492/ |title='Parnassus' Team Faces Dilemma | work=Variety | date =23 January 2008 | access-date=23 January 2008 }} Production was suspended indefinitely by 24 January,{{Cite news| author=Kilpatrick, Christine | url=http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20173511,00.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080126235913/http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20173511,00.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=26 January 2008 | title=Production Suspended on Heath Ledger's Latest Movie|work=People|date=24 January 2008|access-date=24 January 2008 }} but in February the actors Johnny Depp, Jude Law, and Colin Farrell signed on to continue Ledger's role, transforming into multiple incarnations of his character in the "magical" world of the film.{{Cite news| author=Moriarty|url=https://www.aintitcool.com/node/35623|title=AICN Exclusive! We Know Who's Paying Tribute to Heath Ledger in Dr. Parnassus Now!|work=Ain't It Cool News|date=15 February 2008|access-date=17 February 2008|quote=...we're going to see Heath Ledger's work in Terry Gilliam's new film, and that we're also going to see three very interesting actors step up to offer interpretations of him...now we've got the names verified... Johnny Depp. ... Jude Law. ... Colin Farrell.|author-link= Drew McWeeny}}{{Cite news|author=Shawn Adler |title=Heath Ledger's Final Film to Go Forward – With Johnny Depp, Jude Law, Colin Farrell in His Role |publisher=MTV |url=http://www.mtv.ca/news/article.jhtml?id=7086 |date=15 February 2008 |access-date=15 February 2008 |quote=Report: The three actors have signed on to complete film. ... Heath Ledger died last month at the age of 28, but his final performance will live on – thanks to a little creativity and some famous friends. ... Johnny Depp, Jude Law and Colin Farrell have all signed on to film scenes as Ledger's character in Terry Gilliam's 'The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus,' a magical re-telling of the Faust story, according to Aintitcoolnews.com. The announcement serves as a tribute to the man many have called one of the best actors of his generation. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511152754/http://www.mtv.ca/news/article.jhtml?id=7086 |archive-date=11 May 2011 }} Thanks to this arrangement the principal photography was completed on 15 April 2008, on schedule. During the filming, Gilliam was accidentally hit by a bus and suffered a broken back.{{cite magazine|title=How Terry Gilliam Weathered Loss of Heath Ledger to Finish Fanciful Imaginarium|author=Hart, Hugh |url=https://www.wired.com/underwire/2010/01/imaginarium-terry-gilliam/all/1|magazine=Wired|date=7 January 2010|access-date=28 January 2010}} The film had successful screenings including a premiere at the 62nd Cannes Film Festival. The UK release for the film was scheduled for 6 June 2009, but was pushed back to 16 October 2009. The USA release was on 25 December 2009. Eventually, this $30 million-budgeted film had grossed more than $60 million in worldwide theatrical release and received two Academy Award nominations. The film's end credit states that the film is dedicated to the memories of Ledger and William Vince. Depp, Farrell, and Law donated their proceeds from the film to Ledger's daughter.{{Cite news| author=Salter, Jessica | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/2578354/Heath-Ledgers-daughter-given-wages-of-stars-in-Terry-Giliams-Dr-Parnassus.html| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080821044007/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/celebritynews/2578354/Heath-Ledgers-daughter-given-wages-of-stars-in-Terry-Giliams-Dr-Parnassus.html| url-status=dead| archive-date=21 August 2008|title=Heath Ledger's Daughter Given Wages of Stars in Terry Gilliam's Dr. Parnassus|work=The Daily Telegraph|access-date=18 August 2008|date=18 August 2008}}

Gilliam made his opera debut at London's English National Opera (ENO) in May 2011, directing The Damnation of Faust, by Hector Berlioz.{{cite web |title=The Damnation of Faust |url=http://www.eno.org/see-whats-on/productions/production-page.php?&itemid=1087 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101011122710/http://www.eno.org/see-whats-on/productions/production-page.php?&itemid=1087 |archive-date=11 October 2010 |access-date=23 October 2010 |publisher=ENO}} On 16 September 2012, the production opened at the Vlaamse Opera in Ghent, Belgium, in the opera's original French-language version and received praise from critics and audiences alike. After a number of performances in Ghent, the production moved to the opera house in Antwerp for a sold-out run of performances.

In July 2012, Gilliam revealed plans for a film which would be shot in Bucharest, Romania. He denied that it would be Don Quixote but refused to give any further details.Lyman, Eric. J. (2012)[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/terry-gilliam-don-quixote-postponed-bucharest-347065 "Terry Gilliam: 'Don Quixote' Postponed Again, but Bucharest Calls (Q&A)"]. Hollywood Reporter. 7 July 2012. On 13 August 2012, this project was announced to be The Zero Theorem, set to start shooting in Bucharest on 22 October, produced by Dean Zanuck (son of the late Richard D. Zanuck, who was originally to produce the film in 2009), with worldwide sales handled by Voltage Pictures, Toronto, and starring the Academy Award–winner Christoph Waltz in the lead (replacing Billy Bob Thornton, who had been attached to the project in 2009).Billington, Alex (2012). [http://www.firstshowing.net/2012/terry-gilliams-latest-existential-head-trip-will-star-christoph-waltz/ "Terry Gilliam's Latest Existential Head Trip Will Star Christoph Waltz"]. Firstshowing.net. 13 August 2012.White, James (2012). [https://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=34873 "Waltz Figures Out the Zero Theorem: Terry Gilliam's Latest!"]. Empire. 13 August 2012.Eisenberg, Eric (2012). [https://www.cinemablend.com/new/Christoph-Waltz-Star-Terry-Gilliam-Zero-Theorem-32462.html "Christoph Waltz to Star in Terry Gilliam's Zero Theorem"]. Cinema Blend. 13 August 2012.Fleming, Mike (2012). [https://deadline.com/2012/08/toronto-christoph-waltz-starring-in-terry-gilliams-the-zero-theorem-voltage-selling-317902/ "Update: Toronto: Terry Gilliam Confirms Christoph Waltz for 'Zero Theorem'"]. 14 August 2012.Serafino, Jason (2012). [https://web.archive.org/web/20120819100249/http://www.complex.com/pop-culture/2012/08/christoph-waltz-signs-on-for-terry-gilliams-zero-theorem "Christoph Waltz Signs On for Terry Gilliam's 'Zero Theorem'"]. Complex. 14 August 2012.Schafer, Sandy (2012). [https://screenrant.com/terry-gilliam-zero-theorem-christoph-waltz/ "Terry Gilliam Is Making 'The Zero Theorem' with Christoph Waltz"], screenrant.com. 14 August 2012.Brown, Todd (2012).[http://twitchfilm.com/news/2012/08/terry-gilliam-resurrects-the-zero-theorem-with-christoph-waltz.php "Terry Gilliam Resurrects the Zero Theorem with Christoph Waltz"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120815231213/http://twitchfilm.com/news/2012/08/terry-gilliam-resurrects-the-zero-theorem-with-christoph-waltz.php |date=15 August 2012 }}. Twitch Film. 14 August 2012. The Zero Theorem premiered at the 70th Venice International Film Festival on 2 September 2013.{{cite web |url= http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/terry-gilliam-says-the-zero-theorem-headed-to-venice-film-festival-jessica-chastains-eleanor-rigby-also-rumored-20130714 |title= Terry Gilliam Says 'The Zero Theorem' Headed to Venice Film Festival; Jessica Chastain's 'Eleanor Rigby' Also Rumored |work= blogs.indiewire.com |last= Jagernauth |first= Kevin |date= 14 July 2013 |access-date= 15 July 2013 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20130716051208/http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/terry-gilliam-says-the-zero-theorem-headed-to-venice-film-festival-jessica-chastains-eleanor-rigby-also-rumored-20130714 |archive-date= 16 July 2013 |url-status=dead |df= dmy-all }}{{cite web | url=http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/70th-festival/screenings/sept2.html | title=2 September | work=www.labiennale.org | publisher=Venice Film Festival | access-date=16 August 2013 | url-status=dead | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016043313/http://www.labiennale.org/en/cinema/70th-festival/screenings/sept2.html | archive-date=16 October 2015 | df=dmy-all }}

In June 2014, Gilliam followed up on his success with Faust with a new ENO production of another opera by Berlioz, the rarely performed Benvenuto Cellini.[https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b047zky8 Opera on 3 – Berlioz's Benvenuto Cellini]. BBC Radio 3 broadcast, 30 June 2014.

After regaining the rights to the screenplay of The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, Gilliam restarted preproduction in 2008, with Johnny Depp still attached to the project.{{Cite news|title=Pandora: Don Quixote rides again, says delighted Gilliam |author=Alica-Azania Jarvis |work=The Independent |location=UK |date=4 August 2008 |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/pandora/pandora-don-quixote-rides-again-says-delighted-gilliam-884243.html |access-date=4 August 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080819042752/http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/columnists/pandora/pandora-don-quixote-rides-again-says-delighted-gilliam-884243.html |archive-date=19 August 2008 }} The film was to be reshot completely, with Rochefort's role recast. Michael Palin reportedly entered into talks with Gilliam about stepping in for Rochefort and playing Don Quixote.{{cite web|title=Monty Python – Palin to Act Alongside Depp?|publisher=Contact Music|date=26 May 2008|url=http://www.contactmusic.com/news.nsf/article/palin%20to%20act%20alongside%20depp_1069633|access-date =25 July 2008}} However, Gilliam revealed on the Canadian talk show The Hour on 17 December 2009 that Robert Duvall had been cast to play Quixote, before the film was postponed once again.{{Cite news| url=http://www.cbc.ca/video/#/Shows/ID=1362888191|publisher=CBC News|title=Episode 61 – The Hour}} In January 2014, Gilliam wrote on Facebook that "Dreams of Don Quixote have begun again".{{cite web|url=https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=640151836043634&set=a.256735074385314.62810.256730041052484&type=1&stream_ref=10|title=Terry Gilliam – Timeline Photos – Facebook|work=facebook.com}} At the Cannes Film Festival in 2016, it was confirmed that The Man Who Killed Don Quixote was going to be made, with Michael Palin and Adam Driver in starring roles.Skinner, Craig (2016). [http://www.flickreel.com/terry-gilliams-the-man-who-killed-don-quixote-to-star-adam-driver-and-michael-palin-new-concept-art-uncovered/ Exclusive: Terry Gilliam's The Man Who Killed Don Quixote to Star Adam Driver and Michael Palin; New Concept Art Uncovered]. Flickreel.com. 11 May 2016. In March 2017, filming finally began, with Driver and Jonathan Pryce starring.{{cite news|last1=Lapin|first1=Andrew|title=Terry Gilliam Has Begun Shooting 'The Man Who Killed Don Quixote', For Real This Time|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2017/03/terry-gilliam-back-with-don-quixote-1201791646/|date=9 March 2017|work=IndieWire}} On 4 June 2017, Gilliam announced that the shooting of the film was complete.{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/TerryGilliam/status/871356842265505792|title=Sorry for the long silence|access-date=4 June 2017|date=4 June 2017}} The film premiered on 19 May 2018, as the closing film of the 2018 Cannes Film Festival (where it received a standing ovation), and was released in French theatres the same day.{{cite web|url=https://www.screendaily.com/news/cannes-adds-lars-von-trier-latest-the-man-who-killed-don-quixote-whitney-doc-/5128427.article|title=Cannes adds Lars von Trier latest, 'The Man Who Killed Don Quixote', 'Whitney' doc|work=Screen Daily|date=19 April 2018|access-date=19 April 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2018/film/news/cannes-lars-von-trier-the-house-that-jack-built-terry-gilliam-don-quixote-1202755595/|title=Cannes Adds Lars von Trier's 'The House That Jack Built', Sets Terry Gilliam's 'Don Quixote' as Closer|work=Variety|date=19 April 2018|access-date=19 April 2018}}{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/STUDIOLEQUIPE/status/986953925445259264|title=@quixotemovie by @TerryGilliam will close the @Festival_Cannes |date=19 April 2018|access-date=20 April 2018}}{{cite journal|url=https://slate.com/culture/2018/05/terry-gilliams-the-man-who-killed-don-quixote-made-its-decades-delayed-premiere-at-cannes.html|title=Decades in the Making, Terry Gilliam's Don Quixote Is a Dream, and a Delusion, Come True |journal=Slate |date=22 May 2018|access-date=22 May 2018|last1=Han |first1=Karen }}

His production of Into the Woods, which he co-directed with Leah Hausman, premiered at the Theatre Royal, Bath in August 2022 to positive reviews.{{cite web|url=https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2022/aug/25/into-the-woods-review-terry-gilliams-rollicking-take-on-sondheims-fairytale-collision|title=Into the Woods review – Terry Gilliam's rollicking take on Sondheim's 'fairytale collision'|work=The Guardian|date=25 August 2022|access-date=23 October 2022}}

In June 2024, Gilliam announced the making of a new film called Carnival: At the End of Days.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2025/02/terry-gilliam-carnival-at-the-end-of-days-producer-andrea-iervolino-johnny-depp-1236276479/|title=Terry Gilliam Project 'Carnival: At The End Of Days' Heads To EFM With Producer Andrea Iervolino|website=Deadline Hollywood|first=Andreas|last=Wiseman|date=3 February 2025|access-date=27 February 2025}} It will star Depp, reuniting with Gilliam, along with Bridges, Driver, and Jason Momoa. The production of the film is expected to begin in April 2025 according to Gilliam. Johnny Depp will play Satan, and Jeff Bridges will play God in the film.{{cite news |first=Jo |last=Vito |url=https://consequence.net/2024/06/terry-gilliam-johnny-depp-jeff-bridges |title=Terry Gilliam Details New Film Starring Johnny Depp as Satan and Jeff Bridges as God |date=2 June 2024 |website=Consequence}}

{{See also|Terry Gilliam's unrealized projects}}

File:Terry Gilliam.jpg

In addition to film projects as director, Gilliam has been involved with developing projects for other artists and mediums. On 16 December 2010, Variety reported that Gilliam was to "godfather" a film called 1884, described as an animated steampunk parody of George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four, with several former Pythons lending their voices to the project; Gilliam was to be credited as "creative advisor".Hopewell, John; Keslassy, Elsa (2010). [https://variety.com/2010/biz/markets-festivals/gilliam-to-godfather-1884-1118029166/ "Gilliam to Godfather '1884': Tim Ollive to Helm Retro Sci-Fi Fantasy"]. Variety. 16 December 2010. On 15 May 2013, Gilliam was signed on to executive produce The White Circus, a "dark fairy tale" adventure-romance that was to star Chloë Grace Moretz, Asa Butterfield, Andrea Riseborough and Christian Friedel.Keslassy, Elsa (2013). [https://variety.com/2013/biz/global/chloe-moretz-asa-butterfield-run-off-to-the-circus-1200481663/ Chloe Moretz, Asa Butterfield Run Off to the 'Circus']. Variety. 15 May 2013.

Fifteen years after the publication of Gilliam's Animations of Mortality, between the release of the CD-ROM game Monty Python's Complete Waste of Time in 1994, which used many of Gilliam's animation templates, and the making of Gilliam's film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1998), Gilliam was in negotiations with Enteractive, a software company, to tentatively release in the autumn of 1996 a CD-ROM under the same title as his 1978 book, containing all of his thousands of 1970s animation templates as licence-free clip arts for people to create their own flash animations, but the project hovered in limbo for years,Cate, Hans ten (1996) [http://www.dailyllama.com/news/1996/llama020.html "Animations of Mortality:" Terry Gilliam's New Interactive CD-ROM Game] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231002225155/http://www.dailyllama.com/news/1996/llama020.html |date=2 October 2023 }}. Monty Python's Daily Llama. 16 January 1996.Sterrit, David; Rhodes, Lucille (2004). [https://books.google.com/books?id=8eDE0hce0kEC&dq=%22animations+of+mortality%22+%22CD+rom%22&pg=PR13 Terry Gilliam: Interviews], University Press of Mississippi. probably because Enteractive was about to downsize greatly in mid-1996 and changed its focus from CD-ROM multimedia presentations to internet business solutions and web hosting in 1997[http://www.mobygames.com/company/enteractive-inc "Enteractive, Inc."] MobyGames.com. (in the introduction to their 2004 book Terry Gilliam: Interviews, David Sterrit and Lucille Rhodes claimed that the internet had overwhelmed the "computer-communications market" and gave this as the reason that the Animations of Mortality CD-ROM never materialised). Around the time of Gilliam's film The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009), the project had changed into the idea of releasing his 1970s animation templates as a licence-free download of Adobe After Effects or similar files.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}

Gilliam has been married to British makeup artist Maggie Weston since 1973. She worked on Monty Python's Flying Circus, many of the Python films, and Gilliam's films up to The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. They have three children: Amy Rainbow (born 1978), Holly Dubois (born October 1980), and Harry Thunder (born 3 April 1988), all of whom have also appeared in or worked on several of his films.

In 1968, Gilliam obtained British citizenship. He held dual American and British citizenship for the next 38 years, until he renounced his American citizenship in January 2006.[https://www.cbsnews.com/news/terry-gilliam-sounds-off/ "Terry Gilliam Sounds Off"] . ShowBuzz. CBS News. 6 October 2006.{{Cite web|date=1 May 2006|title=Quarterly Publication of Individuals, Who Have Chosen To Expatriate, as Required by Section 6039G|url=https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2006/05/01/E6-6478/quarterly-publication-of-individuals-who-have-chosen-to-expatriate-as-required-by-section-6039g|access-date=23 July 2020|website=Federal Register}} In an interview with Der Tagesspiegel,[http://www.tagesspiegel.de/kultur/kopflos-am-potsdamer-platz/683306.html (10 February 2006). Kopflos am Potsdamer Platz. tagesspiegel] {{in lang|de}}. Retrieved 28 April 2014. he described the action as a protest against then-President George W. Bush, and in an earlier interview with The A.V. Club, he also indicated that it was related to concerns about future tax liability for his wife and children.{{cite web|last=Robinson |first=Tasha |url=https://www.avclub.com/content/node/54008 |title=AV Club Interview |publisher=Avclub.com |access-date=1 June 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080921165210/http://www.avclub.com/content/node/54008 |archive-date=21 September 2008 }}{{cite book |last=Gross|first=David M.|year=2014|title=99 Tactics of Successful Tax Resistance Campaigns|publisher=Picket Line Press|isbn=978-1-4905-7274-1|page=86}} As a result of renouncing his citizenship, Gilliam was permitted to spend 30 days each year in the United States over the next ten years, "less than any European". Holly followed suit, renouncing her American citizenship in 2017.{{Cite web|date=2 November 2017|title=Quarterly Publication of Individuals, Who Have Chosen To Expatriate, as Required by Section 6039G|url=https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2017/11/02/2017-23885/quarterly-publication-of-individuals-who-have-chosen-to-expatriate-as-required-by-section-6039g|access-date=23 July 2020|website=Federal Register}}

He maintains a residence in Italy near the Umbria–Tuscany border. He has been instrumental in establishing the annual Umbria Film Festival,{{cite web |url=http://www.umbriafilmfestival.com/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20020715091851/http://www.umbriafilmfestival.com/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=15 July 2002 |title=Umbria Film Festival web site |publisher=Umbriafilmfestival.com |access-date=1 June 2011 }} held in the nearby town of Montone. Gilliam also resides in Highgate, London.{{cite news|title=My latest is a disaster movie|date=4 February 2001|newspaper=The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2001/feb/04/miguelcervantes|access-date=30 March 2017}}

Gilliam has been covered several times for his views on transgender people and cancel culture. He also called #MeToo a "witch hunt". He also said, "There are many victims in Harvey's life, and I feel sympathy for them, but then, Hollywood is full of very ambitious people who are adults and they make choices."{{cite web |title=Terry Gilliam interview: 'I'm tired of white men being blamed for everything wrong with the world' |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/terry-gilliam-interview-harvey-weinstein-victims-metoo-race-a9269136.html |website=The Independent |access-date=10 April 2025 |language=en |date=6 January 2020}}

Gilliam has said multiple times that he "identifies" as a black person. He also states he is a "black lesbian in transition".{{cite web |last1=film |first1=Guardian |title=Terry Gilliam on diversity: 'I tell the world now I'm a black lesbian' |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2018/jul/04/terry-gilliam-on-diversity-bbc-monty-python-black-lesbian |website=The Guardian |date=4 July 2018}} His views on whether or not this is a joke or sincere belief are ambiguous, sometimes even in the same interview. He said "When I do interviews I'm playing around, talking, joking. I'm not on a soapbox, I'm not trying to proclaim a truth, just throwing out ideas. You say something and it's a headline and then... boom! How do we bring back context and nuance into the discussion?" Reacting to the concept of diversity in comedy, he said "... this is bullshit. I no longer want to be a white male, I don't want to be blamed for everything wrong in the world: I tell the world now I'm a black lesbian... My name is Loretta and I'm a BLT, a black lesbian in transition." He later said "That all comes from "Life of Brian," when Eric [Idle's character], whose name is Stan, says "I want you to call me Loretta. I want to be a woman." People now might take offense at that. And when offense becomes so easy, it takes the fun out of offending!"{{cite web |last1=James |first1=Caryn |title=Monty Python's Terry Gilliam Wishes Comedy Hadn't Changed |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/monty-pythons-terry-gilliam-wishes-comedy-hadnt-changed-11555333940 |website=Wall Street Journal |date=15 April 2019}}

He blames the group Stonewall for his view which was reported by The Times as "organisations and politicians feeling under pressure to put trans inclusivity above concerns for women." Describing the BBC and government departments cutting some ties with Stonewall, he said "Maybe common sense is rising again."{{cite web |last1=Urwin |first1=Rosamund |title=Terry Gilliam: How I was squished by cancel culture |url=https://www.thetimes.com/culture/theatre-dance/article/terry-gilliam-how-i-was-squished-by-cancel-culture-m0mqmj303?region=global |website=www.thetimes.com |language=en |date=5 August 2022}}

Gilliam expressed support{{cite web |title=Facebook |website=Facebook |url=https://www.facebook.com/Terry.Gilliam/posts/pfbid0rR7AzBxCPos6ptwq5ocFM6PjorU2oPGdyUaMfeBGDFzqMnk4fyKDAUv5dStCg5Pul}} when a UK ex-police officer won a legal challenge regarding alleged transphobic tweets the officer made.{{cite web |title=Harry Miller: Legal victory after alleged transphobic tweets |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-lincolnshire-59727118 |date=20 December 2021}} He stated "if you don't agree with [activists], you're then a transphobe, a homophobe... No! I'm a phobe-phobe! I hate hate!"{{cite web |title=Director Terry Gilliam on how people shouldn't be frightened to laugh |url=https://www.euronews.com/culture/2023/10/19/director-terry-gilliam-were-living-in-a-time-where-irony-is-not-recognized-anymore |website=euronews |language=en |date=19 October 2023}}

In 2021, his production of Into the Woods was set to play at The Old Vic. The production was cancelled and moved to an unrelated theater, the Theatre Royal. This was reportedly due to "staff unrest at ... Gilliam's involvement".{{cite web |title=Old Vic cancelled Into the Woods after staff unrest at Terry Gilliam's involvement |url=https://www.thestage.co.uk/news/old-vic-cancelled-into-the-woods-after-staff-unrest-at-terry-gilliams-involvement |website=The Stage |language=En}} Gilliam was reportedly asked to apologize for his #MeToo comments, but "further offended staff" with his online recommendation of Dave Chappelle's Netflix special.{{cite web |last1=Dex |first1=Robert |title=Search for new theatre for show cancelled by Old Vic in Gilliam row |url=https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/search-theatre-show-cancelled-old-vic-terry-gilliam-row-london-b963886.html |website=The Standard |language=en |date=2 November 2021}} The Old Vic said in a statement "Ahead of any season announcement, senior management at the Old Vic would meet with the directors who are programmed to work in the season as a matter of course to discuss our culture and values. This happened with the co-directors of Into the Woods, Terry Gilliam and Leah Hausman."{{cite web |title=Terry Gilliam's Into the Woods cancelled by Old Vic after reports of staff unease |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/59127144 |date=2 November 2021}}

Gilliam stated on Facebook "... The Old Vic allowed itself to be intimidated into cancelling our production ... by a small group of closed-minded, humour-averse ideologues on their staff ... as if they are victims of some cruel injustice desperately fighting for their freedom! My unspeakable crime was recommending my Facebook followers to watch a Netflix special by a brilliant and provocative American comedian ..."{{cite web |title=Facebook |url=https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=485857669570532 |website=www.facebook.com}} Gilliam later specified that Chappelle was the "comedian" he recommended.{{cite web |last1=Cavendish |first1=Dominic |title=Terry Gilliam on cancel culture: 'Britain was nirvana for me. But now...' |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/theatre/what-to-see/terry-gilliam-cancel-culture-britain-nirvana-now/ |website=The Telegraph |date=5 August 2022}}

Gilliam has been involved with a number of charitable and humanitarian causes. In 2009, he became a board member of Videre Est Credere (Latin for "to see is to believe"), a UK human rights charity.UK Charity Commission, [http://apps.charitycommission.gov.uk/Showcharity/RegisterOfCharities/CharityWithPartB.aspx?RegisteredCharityNumber=1130375&SubsidiaryNumber=0 UK Charity Commission Report on Videre], UK Charity Commission, 23 July 2013 Videre describes itself as giving "local activists the equipment, training and support needed to safely capture compelling video evidence of human rights violations. This captured footage is verified, analysed and then distributed to those who can create change."[http://www.videreonline.org/ Videre Website]. Videre Est Credere. 23 July 2013. He participates alongside movie producer Uri Fruchtmann, music producer Brian Eno and executive director of Greenpeace UK John Sauven.

{{Main|Terry Gilliam filmography}}

{{main|List of awards and nominations received by Terry Gilliam}}

Under Gilliam's direction, these actors have received Academy Award nominations (and one win) for their performances in their respective roles.

{{Reflist}}

• {{cite book

|last1=Gilliam

|first1=Terry

|last2=Thompson

|first2=Ben

|title=Gilliamesque

|date=2015

|publisher=Harper Design

|isbn=978-0-06-238074-6}}

• {{cite book

|last1=Gilliam

|first1=Terry

|last2=Sterritt

|first2=David

|author-link2=David Sterritt

|last3=Rhodes

|first3=Lucille

|title=Terry Gilliam: interviews

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=8eDE0hce0kEC

|access-date=7 October 2010

|date=April 2004

|publisher=Univ. Press of Mississippi

|isbn=978-1-57806-624-7}}

• {{cite book

|last1=Gilliam

|first1=Terry

|last2=Christie

|first2=Ian

|author-link2=Ian Christie (film scholar)

|title=Gilliam on Gilliam

|url=https://archive.org/details/gilliamongilliam0000gill

|url-access=registration

|access-date=7 October 2010

|year=1999

|publisher=Faber and Faber

|isbn=978-0-571-20280-5}}

• {{cite book

|last1=McCabe

|first1=Bob

|last2=Gilliam

|first2=Terry

|title=Dark Knights And Holy Fools: The Art And Films of Terry Gilliam

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Fp5IPgAACAAJ

|access-date=7 October 2010

|date=30 September 1999

|publisher=Diane Pub Co

|isbn=978-0-7567-9080-6}}

• {{cite book

|last=Wilmut

|first=Roger

|author-link=Roger Wilmut

|title=From fringe to flying circus: celebrating a unique generation of comedy, 1960–1980

|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PzxaAAAAMAAJ

|access-date=7 October 2010

|year=1980

|publisher=Eyre Methuen

|isbn=978-0-413-46950-2}}

{{sister project links|d=Q25078|n=no|b=no|v=no|voy=no|m=no|mw=no|wikt=no|s=no|species=no}}

• {{official website}}
• {{IMDb name|0000416}}
• [http://www.gilliamdreams.com Dreams: The Terry Gilliam Fanzine]

{{Terry Gilliam}}

{{Navboxes

|title = Awards for Terry Gilliam

|list =

{{BAFTA Academy Fellowship Award}}

{{Empire Award for Best Director}}

{{Inkpot Award 2000s}}

{{Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Director}}

{{Los Angeles Film Critics Association Award for Best Screenplay}}

{{Winsor McCay Award 2010s}}

}}

{{Monty Python}}

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