Terry Gilliam’s long-awaited biblical comedy Carnival: At the End of Days has become a saga of creative ambition, financial challenges and shifting production plans. This darkly comic retelling of a biblical apocalypse envisions a world where God, frustrated by man's corruption of His perfect garden, decides to wipe out humanity. Meanwhile, Satan, unexpectedly thrust into the role of humanity's saviour, desperately works to prevent his own obsolescence. The script, co-signed by Gilliam and Christopher Brett Bailey, captures the director’s irreverent tone, with Gilliam describing the film as a simple tale about Satan’s efforts to save humanity to protect his own existence. His attempt to convince God to spare humanity by presenting young people as the new Adam and Eve adds another layer of comedy to this apocalyptic scenario.

Rumours surrounding the casting have sparked further excitement for the project, with talk of Johnny Depp, a frequent Gilliam collaborator in films such as Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus [+lire aussi :
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Despite these exciting prospects, Carnival: At the End of Days has faced significant financial challenges since its inception. Early reports in May 2024 suggested that Gilliam had secured the necessary funding and was aiming for a January 2025 shoot. However, by September, Gilliam revealed that the project still lacked sufficient funds, leading him to consider compromising his creative vision. In an effort to overcome these financial hurdles, Gilliam has been negotiating with Saudi financiers and has even expressed openness to shooting in Saudi Arabia if it secures the full $30 million budget.

In the midst of these challenges, Italian producer and entrepreneur Andrea Iervolino has emerged as a key figure in the project’s unfolding narrative. Known for his work on films such as Ferrari [+lire aussi :
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interview : Valentina Bellè
fiche film], Maserati: The Brothers, and To The Bone, Iervolino’s involvement brings renewed hope to the project. He is actively engaging with potential buyers and aiming to secure a sales agent at the European Film Market in Berlin. His company, The Andrea Iervolino Company, is co-producing with Gilliam’s daughter, Amy Gilliam, and plans are already in place for the film to shoot in Italy as early as April 2025, contingent on securing additional funding.

These production difficulties are not new for Gilliam. His previous film, The Man Who Killed Don Quixote [+lire aussi :
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interview : Terry Gilliam
fiche film], famously endured a long and troubled production process, leading to a lack of investor confidence in his subsequent projects.