Well, Terry Gilliam Has Lost The Rights To THE MAN WHO KILLED DON QUIXOTE
Terry Gilliam's long-time passion project, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote, really must be a cursed film! The director has been trying to get this film made for decades! Things looked bright for him and the project when he actually completed production on it with Adam Driver and it ended up premiering at the Cannes Film Festival.
Well, things just took another crazy turn as Gilliam just lost the rights to his film! Screen Rant reports that the Paris Court of Appeal just ruled in favor of the film’s former producer, Paulo Brancho, who sued for rights to the project on the grounds that Gilliam made the film illegally. Wow! I didn't see that coming!
According to Branco and his production company Alfama, Gilliam and his team didn't hold the rights to make the film. Screen Daily quotes Branco as saying:
"The film belongs in its entirety to [the production company Alfama Films]. The film was made illegally. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen so many people embark on a mission to produce and exploit a film, without holding the rights. It’s a unique case."
On top of that, Gilliam also had to pay a little over $10,000 in damages to Alfama Films, and the production company will be seeking similar recompense from the film’s production crew and the Cannes Film Festival.
This is just crazy! I'll be honest, I feel bad for Gilliam because this is the passion project that he's never given up on after all of the crazy problems that he's had to endure in trying to make it over the years. Those problems are still continuing and we have no idea if the film will ever see the light of day at this point. At the same time, he should've made sure it was ok for him to make the film before he actually went out and made it.
The story of this film production seems wilder than the story that the film will tell!
The Man Who Killed Don Quixote stars Adam Driver (Star Wars: The Last Jedi) in the role of Toby and Jonathan Pryce (Pirates of the Caribbean) in the role of Don Quixote, and this is the synopsis:
The Man Who Killed Don Quixote tells the story of a deluded old man who is convinced he is Don Quixote, and who mistakes Toby, an advertising executive, for his trusty squire, Sancho Panza. The pair embark on a bizarre journey, jumping back and forth in time between the 21st and magical 17th century. Gradually, like the infamous knight himself, Toby becomes consumed by the illusory world and unable to determine his dreams from reality. The tale culminates in a phantasmagorical and emotional finale where Toby takes on the mantle of Don Quixote de la Mancha.
The movie also stars Stellan Skarsgård (Avengers: Age of Ultron, Good Will Hunting), Olga Kurylenko (Quantum of Solace, Oblivion), Joana Ribeiro (Portugal Não Está à Venda, A Uma Hora Incerta), Óscar Jaenada (Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides), Jordi Mollà (Criminal, In the Heart of the Sea), Sergi Lopez (Pan’s Labyrinth) and Rossy de Palma (Julieta, The Flower of my Secret).