Despite there still being no public announcement of a US distribution deal for The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus, Terry Gilliam is still very busy with publicity for the film as well as planning for next year’s second attempt at The Man Who Killed Don Quixote. I’m in hog heaven reading, watching and listening to all of the interviews that are piling up and only hope I can see The Imaginarium sooner rather than later.

Speaking to The Independent, Gilliam has spelled out quite clearly that his Quixote plans have had to change:

I can now honestly say that I’m not working with Johnny on Don Quixote. He’s booked himself up on a lot of other films. I wanted to shoot Don Quixote next spring. He said he’s not available and we have both agreed that I’m going to die soon, so it would be nice to get this film under my belt.

The most extensive Gilliam interview to roll out recently was one with Drew McWeeny at Hit Fix. It’s a great read, and not just for Gilliam groupies like myself. There’s more about Johnny Depp therein, including this comment on Public Enemies:

…personally I didn’t think Johnny had enough room to act. The one scene that was good was where he’s in prison, in jail, and Chris is outside. That was the only time I really thought, “Okay, now you’ve got some room here to do something.” And that’s what bothered me about it. It didn’t allow him enough moments like that. It was just push, push, push. Put that fedora on. Wear the clothing. Because he can be fantastic and I like it when he plays it down, I agree. I just thought there was too much of it where he just was there, but he didn’t have the moments to allow him to do just a little bit more.

I agree. And here’s Gilliam on the matter of Quixote casting:

I’m meeting some actors this weekend as a matter of fact.

Need he say more? Excitingly, Gilliam also mentions another meeting he was anticipating:

Philip K. Dick is always been one of my favorite writers. He doesn’t go where that road takes you. I’m actually meeting his daughter tomorrow… One of the things that is… there’s another one that people don’t know called The World According to Jones. Do you know that one? That really fascinates me… where we’re in a world where basically everything is relative. It can’t be black and white because there’s a more religious fundamentalism that we’re talking about. So now everything is relative. And then the idea that a guy comes along that can see the future, and it is not relative… that intrigues me, and I don’t know exactly how to do it.

Read that again: “I don’t know exactly how to do it”. Wow. It sounds incredibly like Gilliam is planning a movie of The World According to Jones to me. And that, I think, speaks for itself.

Watch out for the cork, I’m about to open the champagne. Any other UK readers want to celebrate too? Then maybe you’d like to catch something at the BFI’s Terry Gilliam season, starting today.