Monty Python Legend Complains Trump ‘Killed’ His New Movie

(Felix H’rhager/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

Monty Python alum Terry Gilliam claimed President Donald Trump “fucked up” his latest movie and has sent him back to the drawing board.

Gilliam, who co-directed the classic Monty Python and the Holy Grail, caught up with The Hollywood Reporter this week while enjoying his time as honorary president of the Umbria Film Festival in Italy. He claimed at one point that Trump has “destroyed satire.”

Asked about the state of comedy and satire today, Gilliam offered his thoughts on Trump, saying the president turned the world “upside down.” He also railed against “woke activists” and their influence on modern comedy.

“I think Trump has changed things considerably. He’s turned the world upside down. I don’t know if people are going to be laughing more, but they’re probably less frightened to laugh. There have been woke activists with a very narrow, self-righteous point of view. That’s frightened so many people, and so many people have been very timid about telling jokes, making fun of things, because if you tell a joke, these people say you’re punching down at somebody. No, you’re finding humor in humanity!” Gilliam said.

On top of his work with the Monty Python comedy group, Gilliam is known for directing acclaimed movies like 12 Monkeys and Time Bandits.

Woke “activists,” Gilliam claimed, destroyed “irony” and “satire,” but argued Trump is also making things more difficult. The director said he’s in the process of re-working the script for The Carnival at the End of Days, which follows Satan (played by Johnny Depp) trying to convince God (voiced by Jeff Bridges) not to wipe out humanity.

“he’s fucked up the latest film I was working on. Because it was a satire about the last several years when things were going as they were. He’s turned it upside down. So he’s killed my movie,” Gilliam said.

The filmmaker said he’s scrapped the tagline for the film in light of Trump.

“I had a sub-title that said: ‘Great fun for all of those who enjoy taking offense.’ That was how I approached it. I think Trump has destroyed satire. I mean, how can you be satirical about what’s going on in the way he’s doing the world?” he said. “With Carnival, the other day I was thinking I was going to put a little preamble on it saying that what you’re about to see takes place during the period historians refer to as the Trump lost years from 2020 to 2024.”