Terry Gilliam made the 1981 movie Time Bandits as a time-traveling adventure for children, and it has become a classic in the memories of a certain demographic group (okay, Gen X). Taika Waititi is in that age group, and (along with Jemaine Clement and Iain Morris) will launch a remake as an Apple+ TV series. Time Bandits is scheduled to comprise ten episodes, with the first two dropping on July 24. Lisa Kudrow leads the cast, and Waititi cast himself as God.
The trailer sparked a discussion at Metafilter about the differences in a production from 1981 and 2024, and the questionable necessity and wisdom of remaking beloved stories. There are links to several controversies surrounding the new Time Bandits. They also pull apart the original, with an ending that parents and children saw very differently.