Terry Gilliam brands 12 Monkeys TV series “a very dumb idea”

Terry Gilliam has said plans to adapt his sci-fi feature 12 Monkeys as a TV series is “a very dumb idea”.

US cable network Syfy announced last week that is has ordered a pilot, based on the 1995 Universal Pictures feature which starred Bruce Willis as a convict sent back in time to gather information about a man-made virus that wiped out most of the planet.

Atlas Entertainment’s Charles Roven and Richard Suckle (Roven was a producer of the film) will executive produce the hour-long pilot, penned by Terry Matalas and Travis Fickett, who both worked on Fox sci-fi series Terra Nova, and production is set to begin in November.

Gilliam is not involved in the project and told ScreenDaily: “I know nothing about that. That’s just ridiculous. It doesn’t have anything to do with me and no-one has contacted me.”

Asked his thoughts on a TV spin-off, he added: “It’s a very dumb idea. That’s what I think. If it was going to be any good it would have to be written by David and Janet Peoples, who wrote the film, otherwise it would just be another version of Time Bandits.”

Time Bandits was Gilliam’s 1981 feature about a boy who joins a band of dwarves as they jump through time looking for treasure to steal.

Gilliam’s latest film, The Zero Theorem [REVIEW], premieres at the Venice International Film Festival today [Sept 2].

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Looking back on directing 12 Monkeys, Gilliam said: “The script was just wonderful and the cast turned out to be just brilliant - and I didn’t fuck it up too badly.”