Taika Waititi is a busy man. In addition to his big-budget productions, he also has a smaller film titled, Next Goal Wins, which has currently completed production. He is also producing the What We Do in the Shadows series as well as producing and acting in Our Flag Means Death for HBO Max. Variety now reports that the New Zealander will be co-producing, writing, and directing for the new series, Time Bandits, over at Apple TV+.
The official plot for Time Bandits reads that it is “a comedic journey through time and space with a ragtag group of thieves and their newest recruit: an eleven-year-old history nerd.” It was recently revealed that Lisa Kudrow, of Friends fame, will be joining the cast as Penelope. Kal-El Tuck from Unseeing Evil will play the eleven-year-old history nerd, Kevin. Charlene Yi, of Knocked Up and Paper Hearts, is cast to play Judy. Tadhg Murphy of Black Sails will be playing Alto. Roger Jean Nsengiyumva, from Tomb Raider, is portraying a character named Widgit. Rune Temte, of Captain Marvel, will be Bittelig. Kiera Thompson will be playing Saffron, and Rachel House, from Thor: Ragnarok, is playing Fianna.
Joining Waititi as producer will be his Flight of the Conchords collaborator, Jemaine Clement, Iain Morris, and Garrett Basch along with Handmade Films. Clement and Morris also co-wrote with Waititi. Time Bandits will be produced by Paramount.
The original Time Bandits is a film product from Monty Python alums Terry Gilliam and Michael Palin. The 1981 film reunited Gilliam and Palin with another Monty Python cast member, John Cleese. The plot was similar to that of which the television series showcases, where an unsuspecting boy joins a band of time-traveling dwarves looking for treasure. The film also co-starred the likes of Sean Connery, Shelley Duvall, Craig Warnock, Kenny Baker, Ian Holm, and many others.