The two billion-dollar movies Terry Gilliam can’t stand: “It’s utter bullshit”
Terry Gilliam has never been one to mince words about anything, a true graduate of the Monty Python school of social commentary.
His ideas and opinions flow seamlessly through his works, almost always boasting of the uncompromising vision that real auteurs always have. From the incisive and batshit crazy commentary on authoritarianism in Brazil to the drug-induced hallucinations of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, it’s incredibly easy to identify a Terry Gilliam joint simply because they are so unique.
However, while that translates well to the big screen, Gilliam has often found himself at the centre of public controversy for applying the same kind of rigidity to understanding sociopolitical events. He has been vocal about his criticism of the #MeToo movement, has mocked trans identities and even “jokingly” declared that he was a “Black lesbian in transition”.
These sentiments have not only alienated many of his fans but have also resulted in him publicly spreading vitriol about the “victim culture” he thinks drives modern Hollywood projects. As an example, he once accused Marvel’s 2018 mega-blockbuster Black Panther of allegedly weaponising identity politics to sell tickets.
Gilliam said, “I hated Black Panther. It makes me crazy. It gives young Black kids the idea that this is something to believe in. Bullshit. It’s utter bullshit. I think the people who made it have never been to Africa… They went and got some stylist for some African pattern fabrics and things. But I just hated that movie, partly because the media were going on about the importance of bullshit… It makes my blood boil.”
It seems as if Gilliam missed the point of the Afrofuturist vision that lies at the centre of Black Panther, one that’s designed to instil hope in communities that are oppressed by the reality of systemic racism on a daily basis. While Marvel should definitely be criticised for its commodification of Afrofuturism in a way that undermines its own critique, it cannot be denied that the cultural messaging encoded in the film resonated with people around the world, as proven by the massive box office numbers that frustrated Gilliam.
Black Panther isn’t the only billion-dollar movie that Gilliam hates, he is also hugely unimpressed by the Harry Potter movies directed by Chris Columbus, but for an entirely different reason. When the talks were being finalised about who was going to helm Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone as well as its sequels, Gilliam had been singled out as a top candidate for the job, but of course, he never ended up getting it.
Expressing his resentment about the missed opportunity, Gilliam commented, “I was the perfect guy to do Harry Potter. I remember leaving the meeting, getting in my car, and driving for about two hours along Mulholland Drive just so angry… I mean, Chris Columbus’s versions are terrible. Just dull. Pedestrian…
“I would have gone crazy,” the director later said when asked about what approach he would have taken, concluding, “It’s a fucking factory, working on Harry Potter. It is.”
