Terry Gilliam has finally wrapped production on his Don Quixote movie – after 17 years
The Monty Python star is determined to bring The Man Who Killed Don Quixote to the big screen
Monty Python star Terry Gilliam is finally out of development hell as – after nearly two decades of work – he has wrapped production on his movie The Man Who Killed Don Quixote.
Gilliam began the project in the late 90s but was hit by problem after problem. A lesser man may have given up, but the comedy star kept going through several failed attempts to complete the film.
Co-written with Tony Grisoni, it is loosely based on Miguel de Cervantes' classic novel Don Quixote and stars Jonathan Pryce, Adam Driver and Stellan Skarsgård.
“Sorry for the long silence. I’ve been busy packing the truck and am now heading home," Gilliam wrote on Facebook. “After 17 years, we have completed the shoot of THE MAN WHO KILLED DON QUIXOTE. Muchas gracias to all the team and believers. QUIXOTE VIVE!”
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Along the way, the cursed film project has been hit by funding problems, insurance problems, illness, scheduling conflicts, cancer diagnoses, flash flooding and legal battles over rights to the screenplay.
Previous incarnations involved Jean Rochefort, Johnny Depp, Robert Duvall, Ewan McGregor, Michael Palin, John Hurt and Vanessa Paradis.
In a statement, Gilliam paid tribute to everyone who stuck with him until the bitter end.
"Don Quixote is a dreamer, an idealist, and a romantic, determined not to accept the limitations of reality, marching on regardless of setbacks, as we have done." he said.
"We’ve been at it so long that the idea of actually finishing shooting this 'clandestine' film, is pretty surreal. Any sensible person would have given up years ago but sometimes pig-headed dreamers win in the end, so thank you to all of the ill paid fantasists and believers who have joined to make this longstanding dream a reality!"
