One of the biggest stories of the first half of 2018 was Terry Gilliam’s “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote.” After a fairly effortless production, preceded by two decades of turmoil, the filmmaker was on the precipice of unveiling his long-awaited film at the Cannes Film Festival. However, as you might expect with a production that has given a new definition for the word “troubled,” it wasn’t going to be as simple as that. Now, almost a year later, ‘Don Quixote’ is about to finally hit US theaters and Gilliam is here to explain the long, arduous journey of bringing Miguel de Cervantes’ classic novel to life.
In a long, but very informative, interview with Vulture, the always-entertaining Gilliam details the two-decades-long struggle to bring his film “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote” to life. Over that time, actors came and went, producers changed, millions of dollars were ultimately wasted, and legal battles were fought (you can take a look at the crazy number of articles we wrote about the process). But none of that is nearly as important as the physical toll the film took on its director.
“Amy was driving me back home and suddenly pulls out into the middle of the road,” he recalls. “I said, ‘What are you doing?’ She said, ‘I’m going around that bus.’ And I said, ‘What bus?’”
Yep, Terry Gilliam suffered his first stroke. This was shortly before the successful production of ‘Don Quixote.’ And as a side-effect of the medical condition, the filmmaker lost part of his vision in his left eye. That doesn’t prevent Gilliam from throwing out one of the best Dad Jokes of the year.
“So I’m less of a visionary director now,” he joked.
But as we know, the production might have gone on without a hitch, but the drama didn’t stop once the cameras were packed up. Gilliam became embroiled in a seemingly never-ending legal battle with a former producer over the rights to ‘Don Quixote.’ And while he was preparing to premiere his passion project at Cannes, another medical issue occurred.
His daughter noticed that one side of his face had dropped. They immediately rushed to the doctor, where it was revealed that he had yet another stroke. However, this time, Gilliam isn’t so sure that was the case.
“There’s been a blockage of things, but I seem to be okay,” he said.
Ultimately, the legal battle came to an end, and in a way that could only be seen as hilarious, given the physical and emotional toll the process of producing “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote” has created. To settle the rights issues, all it took was Gilliam to continue with the planned theatrical rollout, and to write his former producer a check for $11,600.
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All the heartache to make the film and get it seen in theaters was over, thanks to the relatively paltry sum of $11,600. And now, fans in the US will be able to see “The Man Who Killed Don Quixote” when it starts its limited run in theaters on April 19. Those who don’t want to leave their homes can watch the film on VOD that same day.