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Monty Python legend Eric Idle is an 82-year-old cancer survivor — so naturally he has to look out for his health. And according to Idle, that now means avoiding engaging with, or reading about longtime frenemy John Cleese.

The two octogenarians have made headlines for their recent social media spats, but the antagonism didn’t stop there. It seems as though every surviving member of Monty Python has dunked on other members of the troupe in at least one recent interview — except for Terry Gilliam who has been too busy complaining that Donald Trump ruined his anti-woke movies.

Recently, Idle sat down with NME, which asked the Rutles star about the possibility of a future Python project. As the music magazine pointed out, Oasis is touring this year, which could perhaps pave the way for another unlikely reunion between people who hate each other only slightly less than they love money?...

What makes a movie rewatchable? An interesting story? Compelling characters? Strong performances? Humor? Quotable lines? A truly rewatchable movie will have all of these and a little extra. We’re talking about the type of movies that you can throw on the TV when you’re having a bad day and instantly feel a little better. The type of movie that grabs your attention as you walk through the room and immediately distracts you from whatever you were doing. The type of movie that you have to watch, no matter how many times you’ve seen it before.

We took on the impossible task and compiled our list of the 25 most rewatchable movies of all time and listed them in chronological order of release. It doesn’t mean that they’re the greatest movies ever made (that’s a different list that you can check out here), it just means that they have that special,...

The comedy legend is touring the UK in September, but before he arrives here’s a chance to ask him anything about Python, hosting SNL, Trump and looking on the bright side

What’s your enduring image of Eric Idle? Is it him cheerily singing Always Look on the Bright Side of Life from a crucifix? Nudge-nudge, wink-winking Terry Jones down the pub? Or struggling with his habit alongside Robbie Coltrane in Nuns on the Run?

Now 82, Idle is one of the most beloved comedians Britain has produced, an alumni of Cambridge Footlights, Monty Python and the Rutles, who became perhaps the most Americanised of the troupe after moving there permanently in the 1970s.

It’s the comedy classic that may have annoyed you with fans’ endless quoting and impressions. But there is no doubt that Monty Python and the Holy Grail is a staple in the culture of the genre, with one of the most famous comedy troupes taking their brash, unhinged and cartoonish humor and satirizing King Arthur’s quest for the Holy Grail on the big screen. Monty Python and the Holy Grail will be celebrating its 50th Anniversary with special 4K remastered screenings and a new 4K Blu-ray.

Blu-ray.com has announced that Sony Pictures Home Entertainment is unveiling a new 50th Anniversary 4K restoration Blu-ray with a batch of special features, which include the shortened VHS cut (which is remastered in HD) and a “special Japanese version.” This new physical media release is due to hit retailers on August 26.

The description reads,

“Once in a lifetime there comes a...

As we’ve mentioned already, this year marks the 50th anniversary of Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Perhaps predictably, in addition to John Cleese’s pricey screening tour, we’re also getting a brand new physical release of the movie from Sony.

This time, the movie is being issued in 4K for the very first time, which will either look great, or make it very apparent that the film was made on a shoestring budget and had to keep using the same castle over and over again.

While Python fans and physical media enthusiasts are clearly excited about this news, one detail in the press release is a little confusing. The disc will contain the “feature presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision,” as well as a “Near-Theatrical Version of the Film (in HD resolution)” which will allow viewers to “experience a slightly shorter version of the film, as seen on VHS!

Synopsis

Once in a lifetime, there comes a motion picture that changes the whole history of motion pictures. A picture so stunning in its effect, so vast in its impact that it profoundly affects the lives of those who see it. That picture might well be Monty Python & The Holy Grail, featuring the entire Python gang in this hilarious retelling of the Knights of King Arthur and their quest for the Holy Grail.

Disc Details & Bonus Materials

4K Ultra HD Disc

• Feature presented in 4K resolution with Dolby Vision

• English Dolby Atmos + English 5.1 + English Mono

• Special Features:

o Near-Theatrical Version of the Film (in HD resolution) – Experience a slightly shorter version of the film, as seen on VHS!

o ‘Tis But A Tribute – 50 Years of Monty Python and the Holy Grail – Over 25 comedy luminaries share their memories of, affection for, and continued fascination with the film

Blu-ray Disc

• Feature presented...

I first met actors Jiri Bartoska – who died Thursday at the age of 78 – and Leonardo DiCaprio at the same time, at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival 31 summers ago.

The encounter was memorable for all three of us, I suspect. Leo was a teenager, just beginning his march to fame and glory, and Karlovy Vary was his first film festival, also attended by his German mother Irmelin and his German grandparents. He climbed into his grandparents laps and I have that snap eternally imprinted in my memory banks of my favorite movie business moments.

Leonardo DiCaprio with his grandparents in Karlovy Vary Kviff

That fortnight in the Bohemian sun led to a marriage and a daughter for me, but it also led to a fortuitous journalistic adventure that I like to think benefited Variety’s readers as well.

I had just begun my 32 seasons as an editor at the magazine. Jiri...

Exclusive: Kaleidoscope Film Distribution (Kfd) is headed to Cannes next week with three new titles on its slate, including Irvine Welsh: Reality is not Enough.

The Irvine Welsh documentary explores the Scottish author’s influence and the themes of class, mortality, creativity and identity in his work. Directed by Poly Styrene: I Am a Cliché and Tish filmmaker Paul Sng, it features readings by Liam Neeson, Stephen Graham, Nick Cave and Ruth Negga. Kfd holds world rights; the film is produced by Natasha Dack, and was previously titled I Am Irvine Welsh with Noah Media Group then handling sales.

Monty Python has been in the news a lot lately, partly thanks to the 50th anniversary of Monty Python and the Holy Grail, but mostly because the surviving members of the iconic comedy troupe just can’t stop publicly berating one another.

Eric Idle and John Cleese obviously have their long-running social media feud, which led to Cleese claiming that the Pythons “always loathed and despised each other” in a 2024 post.

Cleese also randomly dunked on the “boring” Michael Palin in an interview, prompting his A Fish Called Wanda co-star to later defend himself during a talk show appearance. And when one interviewer asked Palin whether or not he can rely on the Pythons for emotional support, he offered a pretty dispiriting response. “No, I don’t anymore. Whether I ever did, I don’t know,” Palin stated. Similarly, Idle once claimed that the Pythons were never friends, only “colleagues” who “worked together very well.

Exclusive: Twenty-Nine Palms Entertainment, the new London-based international sales and production company launched by Edoardo Bussi last month, has unveiled Before We Forget as its first global acquisition for its upcoming Cannes slate.

The nostalgic, coming-of-age story marks the feature directorial debut of Argentinian actor Juan Pablo Di Pace, and Andrés Pepe Estrada, who is best known as an award-winning editor on films such as Argentina, 1985 and Upon Open Sky).

Di Pace stars as man looking back on the moments that shaped him, returning to memories of his student days in 1990s Italy, to rediscover the friendships, heartbreaks, and quiet triumphs of youth. As the line between past and present begins to blur, he understands that growing up never truly ends, and that looking back can be the only way to move forward.

Originally titled Duino, the Argentinian-Italian-u.S. co-production is lead produced by Di Pace’s Momento Films.

Reflecting on the 50th anniversary of one of the best comedy films in history in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter, British actor John Cleese had quite a lot to say about the legendary film Monty Python and the Holy Grail. The star and co-writer of the comedy ensemble film set in the time of King Arthur, witch hunts, and the plague recalled how BBC executives thought their sketch comedy show Monty Python’s Flying Circus was awful and how the group complemented each other's strengths, and weaknesses, perfectly. However, Cleese had a fresh and classically humorous answer to the often asked question: If you made Holy Grail today, would you have less comedic freedom?

Released by Emi Films in the U.S. on Apr. 28, 1975, Holy Grail has not suffered the same fate as so many other comedies made during that time and for good reason. It's genuinely funny. Being the...

If there’s one thing the surviving members of Monty Python love, other than comedy and petty social media beefs, it’s publicly complaining about the state of their personal funds.

Last year, Eric Idle made headlines for revealing that he is unable to retire because Monty Python’s finances are a “disaster,” allegedly due to the group’s current business manager, and also the lack of royalties and residual payments that get paid out in the streaming era.

While Idle’s complaints about the Monty Python brand’s financial decisions aren’t shared by his fellow Pythons, John Cleese recently made a similar admission concerning his bank account. In a new interview with The Times, per The Daily Express, Cleese claimed that his three divorces have depleted his resources. “The third wife got two properties, one was in London and one was in New York, and we had to sell the other three,...

It’s officially been five decades since Monty Python and the Holy Grail first delighted audiences and boosted the coconut shell industry. To celebrate the iconic 1975 comedy’s 50th anniversary, the BBC recently chatted with every surviving member of Monty Python, minus John Cleese and Eric Idle, who were presumably too busy rage-tweeting about the U.S. president and/or each other.

But just because they’re available for interviews doesn’t mean that fans should be expecting another Python reunion any time soon, as one member made clear.

Michael Palin noted that The Holy Grail very nearly didn’t happen because not everyone in the group was into the idea of following up Monty Python’s Flying Circus with a movie. “It was by no means unanimous that we should do a film after the television series,” Palin recalled, pointing out that two of the Pythons were busy working on their own TV projects,...

As of this week, it’s officially been 50 years since Monty Python and the Holy Grail first hit theaters. While some Python fans may choose to celebrate this milestone by paying nearly $300 to ask John Cleese questions about the production after watching the movie for the billionth time, here’s another idea: Why not visit the castle where much of The Holy Grail was filmed?

The building itself dates back to the 14th century, as The Daily Telegraph recently reported, but Scotland’s Doune Castle has fully embraced the fact that it’s become a tourist destination for Monty Python obsessives who are eager to visit the spot where King Arthur was taunted by an outrageous French soldier.

Play

Doune Castle wasn’t actually the Pythons’ first choice for a filming location. “We’d picked all these wonderful castles,” Terry Jones explained in Monty Python Speaks: The Complete Oral History,...

Monty Python famously reunited in 2014 for a series of concerts at London’s O2 Arena, thrilling fans and, more to the point, allowing them to pay off their staggering legal debts.

Apart from archival footage, the reunion obviously didn’t feature the late Graham Chapman. It also didn’t contain any new material, merely familiar songs and sketches from pre-existing Python projects. Which does beg the question: What exactly was the final Monty Python sketch?

While the last significant Python project was 1983’s Monty Python’s The Meaning of Life, all six original members did get together one last time to celebrate the troupe’s 20th anniversary. And they did end up filming a new sketch. Unfortunately, it never ended up seeing the light of day, apparently, because it sucked so hard.

1989’s Parrot Sketch Not Included – 20 Years of Monty Python was a TV special, hosted by Steve Martin, which...

A lot of attention has been paid to the recent squabbles between the surviving members of Monty Python, but they’ve been clashing with each other long before the days of social media.

In addition to the time Terry Jones threw a typewriter at John Cleese’s head, not everyone in the group was too thrilled with Spamalot, Eric Idle’s Tony Award-winning musical adaptation of Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Michael Palin’s latest installment of his published diaries, There and Back, covers the years 1999 to 2009, which includes the time that Idle first began working on Spamalot. According to the book, when the idea was first floated, Cleese and Palin objected to Idle using “Monty Python” in the musical’s title, and Palin had “vaguely disquieting misgivings about the project as a whole.”

Once Spamalot was completed, Palin didn’t hate it, but still wasn’t a huge fan.

Viking movies have been a consistent film genre since the 1950s, but the concept has received a place in pop culture due to the widely successful TV series Vikings Valhalla and its predecessor, Vikings. The movies based on these Norse people have varied in prominence and historical accuracy. However, most of them cover similar themes, focusing on the brutal and brave lifestyle of the Viking warriors.

Many fans of the Viking genre are interested in the historical accuracy of the narrative but are also invested in the entertainment and cohesiveness of the storyline. Some successful movies have impressed these viewers, including The Vikings and The Northman. Other underrated films, such as The 13th Warrior, have also captivated viewers despite the initial criticism they received. This collection of Viking movies is the overall best in the niche genre.

This article was updated on February 7, 2025, by Christopher Raley: Viking movies represent a niche category of films,...

While most of the roles in a Monty Python film tend to go to members of the group, obviously some do end up being played by non-Pythons. Various supporting parts were played by well-known actors, as well as frequent Monty Python collaborators Neil Innes and Carol Cleveland. Sadly, whichever bunny rabbit played The Killer Rabbit of Caerbannog seems to have been uncredited.

For their second film, the controversial 1979 Biblical spoof Monty Python’s Life of Brian, director Terry Jones stumbled upon a new source of on screen talent: random tour groups.

Python scholar Kim “Howard” Johnson was invited to the set of Life of Brian in Tunisia to document the filming. In 2008, he published his diaries from that time in the book Monty Python's Tunisian Holiday: My Life with Brian. Howard’s account is full of vivid behind the scenes details — such as how John Cleese was preoccupied with cracking...

There have been a lot of stories over the past year about the various feuds between the surviving members of Monty Python. And while that may be kind of a bummer for fans to hear, Sir Michael Palin recently pointed out that one source of interpersonal friction was a key part of what made much of their comedy so great.

In a new interview with The New York Times, Palin discussed his career as a travel documentary host, as well as his published diaries, which chronicled the early years of Monty Python. When the Times suggested that Eric Idle was “upset” by the diary’s release, Palin explained that none of these public beefs would last long if the Pythons were in closer proximity to one another. “The great thing about Python was, when we were all together, any disputes we had were dealt with fairly briskly,” Palin clarified. ”I...

Now that we’re 26 seasons into South Park, it would be unthinkable for series creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone to ever consider killing off one of the core four characters whom we have loved for nearly 30 years — well, any one besides Kenny, of course.

But back in South Park Season Five, the show’s creators decided to throw their avid fanbase a curveball by putting a button on one of the hit animated comedy’s oldest running gags. In “Kenny Dies,” South Park’s unluckiest immortal pauper came down with a terminal illness that led to his unfunniest death thus far in the series, a bleak end that was in stark contrast to the Rube Goldberg-esque graphic death scenes he’d suffered in so many previous episodes. Kenny wouldn’t return in his corporeal form until the Season Six Christmas episode “Red Sleigh Down.”

But as Parker and...

Monty Python and the Holy Grail, which turns 50 this year, is clearly one of best comedies ever made. And, barring some sort of dark twist in the Peter Rabbit series, it’s the best movie to feature a bloodthirsty bunny gnawing someone’s head off.

While the idea of sequelizing this beloved classic may seem foolish to some, it very nearly happened. Back in 1997, Eric Idle pitched a Holy Grail follow-up to the rest of the Pythons. Although the project never came to fruition, Idle’s original outline survives. He’s currently selling copies of The Final Crusade, but he also posted info about it on his blog in 2013.

According to Idle, The Final Crusade was to be “about a group of grumpy old men being pressured to get back together again for a last quest,” which would “allow us to mock ourselves.” And that mockery wasn’t exactly subtle.

Jeff Sneider recently reported that Nosferatu director Robert Eggers was set to helm a new Labyrinth movie, and while some were quick to dismiss the rumor, it's now been confirmed.

Back in 2020, we got word that Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson had signed on to helm a sequel to Jim Henson's fantasy classic for Sony-owned studio TriStar Pictures. Updates have pretty much been non-existent since, and we had heard that another filmmaker was being sought for the project - we just didn't expect it to be Eggers!

According to Deadline, Eggers is also set to write the project with frequent collaborator Sjón for TriStar. Producers will include Lisa Henson, Chris Columbus, and Eleanor Columbus, while Brian Henson will executive produce.

We also have confirmation that the movie will be a direct sequel, not a reboot. Whether this means we'll see Jennifer Connolly back as Sarah and a new...

Robert Eggers will tackle the long awaited Labyrinth 2, and it’s now been announced. A bit more information here.

It’s been an exciting week for Robert Eggers. His remake of Nosferatu has been hugely successful, and it was recently confirmed that his next film will be Werwulf, due out at the end of 2026. Even got through the spell checker, that.

But there’s more! According to Deadline, the filmmaker has closed a deal to write and direct a new Labyrinth film for TriStar Pictures.

The original Labyrinth is a much loved cult classic from 1986. It saw the great Jim Henson direct from a screenplay by Monty Python member Terry Jones.

The story follows sixteen year old Sarah, played by Jennifer Connelly, who must navigate a treacherous maze in order to save her baby brother from The Goblin King, Jareth, played by David Bowie. Throughout her journey, Sarah encounters...

Proving that Canadian news shows aren’t always hopelessly dull, a vintage clip of the Monty Python gang improvising shtick for a Vancouver news crew recently resurfaced on social media. The young Pythons approach a “man on the street” reporter who’s holding a sign informing passersby that they can “say anything they want.”

Terry Jones proclaims that the show is doing a “real service to the community” by allowing people to say words like “grunties” on TV, but Michael Palin bops him on the head and then encourages Canadians to patronize the arts. Specifically by buying tickets to their show: “Remember a full theater is a happy promoter– theater!”

Meanwhile, Eric Idle propositions Neil Innes (“Do you want to come back to my place?”), and John Cleese makes a royal plea. “I’d like to say that I think Prince Philip should come clean about his toupee,” Cleese deadpans,...

It’s 2025 which, despite the lack of flying cars, robot butlers and miraculous poop-cleaning seashells, is very much the future — at least compared to the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s. Even though so much time has passed since the days when the internet was just a twinkle in the eye of Al Gore, people are still very much enjoying the comedy of Monty Python, who first hit the comedy scene way back in 1969 with the debut of Monty Python’s Flying Circus on the BBC.

The Pythons are seemingly just as popular in the 21st century as they were in the 20th, as evidenced by their run of sold-out shows at London’s massive O2 Arena in 2014…

…and their streaming success, first on YouTube, then Netflix and now Shout! TV. Which, when you think about it, is highly unusual. I mean, it’s not like many other decades-old BBC shows are hot streaming commodities these days.

2026 will mark the 40th anniversary of the release of the musical fantasy film Labyrinth… and if all goes well, we might be able to celebrate the anniversary with a new film that’s set in the world of the original film. Such a project has been making its way through development hell for several years, and now Jeff Sneider of The InSneider has revealed that he has heard that The Witch, The Lighthouse, The Northman, and Nosferatu writer/director Robert Eggers has closed a deal to co-write and direct the new Labyrinth film!

This project first started moving forward in 2016, when Guardians of the Galaxy and Captain Marvel writer Nicole Perlman signed on to write the screenplay. Fede Álvarez (Alien: Romulus) was hired to direct the film in 2017, and he wrote his own draft of the script with Jay Basu. The script was complete by October 2018… but the project didn’t go into production,...

Robert Eggers'... Labyrinth?

Back in 2020, we got word that Doctor Strange director Scott Derrickson had signed on to helm a sequel to Jim Henson's fantasy classic for Sony-owned studio TriStar Pictures.

Updates have pretty much been non-existent since, and we're now hearing that another filmmaker is set to direct the project.

Whether the movie is still being developed as a direct sequel or a remake/reboot/reimagining is not clear, but Jeff Sneider is reporting that none other than Robert Eggers is set to write and direct a new Labyrinth film for Sony and the Jim Henson Company.

This may not seem like the type of project Eggers would be interested in, but the original Labyrinth does have some horror elements, and there's always a chance the studio has given him a bit of leeway to take the story in a slightly darker direction.

The 1986 film starred Jennifer Connolly...

Filmmaker Robert Eggers has found success with Nosferatu, his new film inspired by the classic vampire movie. According to a new report, he is now setting his sights on another celebrated film from the past to reboot.

According to movie scooper Jeff Sneider of The InSneider, Eggers has partnered up with Sony and The Jim Henson Company to reboot the 1986 film Labyrinth. In recent years, there have been rumblings about a new Labyrinth movie happening, though previous attempts always fizzled out in development hell. The reported addition of Eggers to the new Labyrinth project could be what gives the reboot the momentum it needs to finally get moving, given how many critics have been calling the new Nosferatu one of the best films of 2024.

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Related Jim Henson Cartoonist Reveals Why Muppet Babies Will Never Be Available on Streaming

Muppet Babies was very popular back in the 1980s, but it's...

Monty Python isn’t exactly known for creating the most festive content, with the possible exception of the first five minutes of Life of Brian, and the “Christmas in Heaven” musical number that wraps up The Meaning of Life.

But, oddly enough, one Python member secured their role in the troupe by finding a creative use for an old holiday tradition.

Back in 1968, Terry Gilliam was having trouble getting work. He had previously made photographic comic strips for a magazine called Help!, including one in which a horny John Cleese hits on his kid’s Barbie doll.

When Help! went under, Cleese told Gilliam to get in touch with the people making Do Not Adjust Your Set, a children’s comedy series featuring Eric Idle, Michael Palin and Terry Jones, which had become a surprise hit with adults. Gilliam later wrote that he was only hired because producer Humphrey Barclay “took pity on me,...

Americans likely know David Frost best as the TV host who took on Richard Nixon in the landmark interview that served as the basis for Ron Howard’s Frost/Nixon — a film that earned rave reviews from everybody except those who went in thinking it was a sequel to Michael Keaton’s harmonica-playing snowman movie.

Frost also had a huge impact on the comedy world, thanks to his 1960s satirical news program The Frost Report, which, along with the Frost-hosted That Was the Week That Was, inarguably paved the way for future news parodies such as The Daily Show and Saturday Night Live’s “Weekend Update.”

The Frost Report’s supporting cast included Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett (who later starred in The Two Ronnies) as well as a young performer named John Cleese. The show’s writing staff also included future Monty Python members Graham Chapman, Michael Palin and Terry Jones.

As we’ve previously mentioned, there’s currently a GoFundMe campaign to raise money to build a statue honoring late Monty Python member Terry Jones in his hometown of Colwyn Bay, Wales. In a rare moment of agreement, all the surviving Pythons have thrown their support behind the project, dubbed “A Python on the Prom,” which will possibly result in a detailed bronze replica of Jones playing the organ while completely naked.

The campaign has, at the time of writing, raised 83 percent of its goal, but organizers are hoping to make up the difference with a new exhibition celebrating Jones’ life. “The Life of Terry” will open in Colwyn Bay on December 12th, with all proceeds going toward the statue fundraiser. The exhibit will reportedly feature more than 100 items that have been loaned by Jones’ family and the Monty Python archive.

The items will include rare personal photographs, as well...

Children's live-action fantasy movies are some of the most popular within the genre among audiences of all ages. Just because a film is meant for kids doesn't mean it won't connect with adults or prove to be a classic in the decades to come. Darker themes and elements are a key part of any children's story, and many of these films are so highly rated and well remembered because they take kids and their opinions seriously. Incorporating scary moments and more mature themes within a safe story is a great way to connect with younger audiences and convey deeper messages.

Despite it being considered a more kid-friendly genre, there are plenty of animated movies that are pretty dark, demonstrating how versatile the medium is. Similarly, live-action can prove to be just as magical and immersive as animation, creating innovative sets and creatures with practical movie sets that aren't CGI. While...

Monty Python is often referred to as “The Beatles of comedy,” but does that mean that they have their very own Pete Best?

Monty Python’s Flying Circus wouldn’t exist without two other shows that came before it: At Last the 1948 Show, which starred both Graham Chapman and John Cleese, and Do Not Adjust Your Set, which featured Terry Jones, Eric Idle and Michael Palin (and its second season incorporated animated sequences from a young American named Terry Gilliam).

Do Not Adjust Your Set was technically a children’s show, but the surreal sketches seemingly resonated more with adults, and as word spread, grown-ups began “rushing home from the office” in order to watch it.

In addition to the future Pythons, Do Not Adjust Your Set also featured two other performers Denise Coffey and David Jason. Jason is perhaps best known for later going on to star in...

1982’s Monty Python Live at the Hollywood Bowl, is one of the all-time great comedy concert films, perfectly capturing the iconic troupe’s electric stage presence back in the days when they were all still alive, and didn’t hate each other’s guts.

The Pythons spent four nights in September of 1980 headlining the famous venue, which they themselves revered. “There was just something about performing at the Hollywood Bowl which I think tickled all of us,” Michael Palin once confessed, “because we were all brought up on LPs of people 'Live at the Hollywood Bowl,' whether it was Sinatra or Errol Garner or the big bands that played on the stage there.”

Terry Jones noted that it was “kind of a party,” and the chill vibe even infected noted crank John Cleese. “I enjoyed every minute of it, and had a wonderful time,” Cleese later admitted. That rock...

Shout! Studios has reached an agreement with Mercury Studios Media Limited to license exclusive U.S. and Canadian distribution rights including AVOD, SVOD, broadcast, theatrical and non-theatrical distribution rights for a catalog of Monty Python films, specials and performances.

This includes perennial favorites such as the landmark sketch comedy TV series “Monty Python’s Flying Circus,” recently restored and available for the first time across all platforms in HD, and comic masterpieces “Monty Python’s Life of Brian” and “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” which marks its 50th anniversary in 2025.

Shout’s CEO Garson Foos said: “Since the earliest days of the company, Shout! has been dedicated to celebrating the best entertainment that pop culture has to offer and has sought to be a trusted home for beloved films and series. Iconic and iconoclastic, Monty Python has long been at the top of that list. We are fans first and foremost,...

John Cleese is best known as a member of the British comedy troupe Monty Python. Let’s look back at the Oscar-nominated funnyman and his 12 greatest films, ranked worst to best.

Born in 1939 in Weston-Super-Mare, Somerset, England, Cleese rose to prominence thanks to the British sketch series “Monty Python’s Flying Circus,” which ran for four seasons on the BBC from 1969-1974. The troupe — which also included Graham Chapman, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, Terry Jones and Michael Palin — revolutionized comedy with their surreal, experimental sketches, the best of which were assembled into the film “And Now for Something Completely Different” (1971). This led to other cinematic outings, including “Monty Python and the Holy Grail” (1975), “Life of Brian” (1979) and “The Meaning of Life” (1983).

Cleese achieved big screen success of his own with “A Fish Called Wanda” (1988), which he wrote and starred in as an uptight English barrister who becomes entangled in an elaborate...

These days, John Cleese is as well known for his comedy career as he is for his “being an embarrassingly out-of-touch curmudgeon” career. Whether it’s complaining about imaginary persecution, feuding with his former collaborators or continually raging against the specter of cancel culture, for a lot of fans, late-stage Cleese straight-up sucks.

This begs the question: Was John Cleese always this shitty?

Certainly the Cleese of the 21st century, even before his most recent transgressions, went out of his way to share a number of garbage opinions — from his claims that London is no longer an “English city” thanks to immigration, to his suggestion that his James Bond role was minimized because of “Asians” (and not because nobody needed John Cleese to be in a James Bond movie).

And in terms of burning any goodwill he’d accrued since his Monty Python days, not many comedians have alienated an...

Jim Henson's 1986 film "Labyrinth" is a deeply beloved classic among kids of a certain age. It presents the raw sexuality of David Bowie, playing a sexy goblin lord in tights, his bulging package kickstarting millions of kids' puberties. At the beginning of the film, the main character, the 16-year-old Sarah (Jennifer Connelly) wants nothing more than to live in a fantasy world, happy to remain in her pretty-princess phase indefinitely. However, when Bowie's goblin king kidnaps her baby brother Toby (Toby Froud), she learns that living in such a world is wild and off-putting. Most of the film is a random, light adventure, but one scene points out that Sarah is unduly clinging onto her childhood trinkets.

She learns the lesson of I Corinthians 13:11. When I was a child, I spoke as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child; but when I became a man,...

While the surviving members of Monty Python are no longer a working comedy team, they have been producing a ton of “why does everyone in Monty Python hate each other?” content this year. Eric Idle and John Cleese have been publicly feuding on social media, Cleese has been needling Michael Palin during interviews and the ghost of Graham Chapman has allegedly been haunting Cleese, possibly in a Christmas Carol sort of deal.

Most recently, Palin has been busy promoting the latest installment of his published diaries, and naturally, the press has been asking him about the current state of the Pythons’ emotional well-being. His response wasn’t exactly encouraging.

“I’ve given up trying to hold together that original family,” Palin told Andrew Marr of Lbc. He went on to explain that the Pythons tended to get along best when they were producing material, but not so much afterwards. “The thing was,...

Earlier this year, a sad truth for fans of Monty Python was unveiled when a feud between members Eric Idle and John Cleese was made public. Idle would profess that the brand had been mismanaged due to Cleese firing former manager Jim Beach and appointing Terry Gilliam’s daughter, Holly, in the position. Eric Idle revealed that funds have dried up from his Monty Python days, writing, “I don’t know why people always assume we’re loaded. Python is a disaster. Spamalot made money 20 years ago. I have to work for my living. Not easy at this age.”

Back in February, Idle made it clear on social media when he posted, “I don’t mind but once they put Gilliams daughter in as Manager and Cleese fires Jim Beach, well it’s over.” A fan responded to the situation by inquiring why other members didn’t get a say on the management replacement decision.

Monty Python, the six-man British comedy group starring John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Michael Palin, Graham Chapman, Terry Jones, and Eric Idle, are known for their sketch comedy show Monty Python's Flying Circus and beloved films such as Monty Python and the Holy Grail and Monty Python and the Meaning of Life. However, fans may be less familiar with the fact that there has always been an honorary seventh member of the group. Carol Cleveland is the only recurring guest actor to feature in every season of Flying Circus as well as all four feature films Monty Python made. While she was never given enough of a spotlight to fully express her talent, Cleveland is a shining star in all her skits. She challenged the Pythons to write funnier and more complex roles for women, and without her work, Monty Python would not have the legacy it has today.

While most news about Monty Python these days tends to involve bitter financial disputes and long-simmering tensions blowing up on social media, there’s at least one recent Python-centric story that’s unquestionably heartwarming. And no, we don’t mean John Cleese’s decision to quit Twitter.

There’s currently a crowdfunding campaign to raise money to pay for a statue honoring Terry Jones, which is to be erected on the promenade in Colwyn Bay, Wales where the late Monty Python member lived until he was nearly five. Jones, of course, passed away in 2020 due to complications of a rare form of dementia, which he was diagnosed with in 2015 — although his death still hasn’t stopped him from booking acting jobs.

The GoFundMe campaign, dubbed “A Python on the Prom,” seeks to raise £120,000 for the bronze sculpture. Run by Jones’ family and the Conwy Arts Trust, the campaign was...

It’s certainly not uncommon for filmmakers to tell autobiographical stories in their work, such as how Steven Spielberg has used dinosaurs, aliens, ancient Biblical relics and aliens a few more times to process his parents’ divorce.

One movie that most people likely don’t tend to think of as autobiographical is Monty Python and the Holy Grail. After all, it’s not like any of the Pythons ever survived any bovine catapult attacks or bloodthirsty bunny rabbit skirmishes.

But an autobiographical reading of The Holy Grail has just been floated — and not by some unhinged fan, but by Eric Idle.

In a new interview with The New Yorker, Idle chatted about a number of different topics, including his apparent financial difficulties, and the state of his relationship with fellow Python John Cleese. But much of the discussion was focused on Idle’s upcoming tour, as well as his newest book,...

“Good bye, Twitter.”

That was John Cleese’s foreboding message to his 5.5 million followers on Twitter, er, X.com last night. Given that this post was Cleese’s 67th since Labor Day (that’s about 10 tweets a day if you don’t want to get out your calculator), it will be interesting to see if his tweet was truly a final bon voyage or more in line with those “we mean it this time!” Monty Python farewell reunion tours.

What set Cleese off enough to make him (maybe) leave the platform? After all, users regularly get his goat, setting off Tweet flurries as he argues with fans over who really understands Monty Python comedy. Yesterday’s offender seems to be none other than the big boss himself, Elon Musk, who had shared a “100” emoji in response to a slam on presidential candidate Kamala Harris.

Musk has tweeted worse, but Cleese...

It was recently reported that the great Mel Brooks has been cast in the upcoming animated film The Land of Sometimes, based on the acclaimed audiobook by Francesca Longrigg. This is hardly the first time that Brooks has lent his voice to a family movie, lest we forget that he had a small role in the cartoon remake of Blazing Saddles that absolutely nobody saw, and played a fanged toilet-monster in Look Who’s Talking Too.

With The Land of Sometimes, which tells the story of two twins who “embark on adventures with mystical creatures after being transported to a magical island,” Brooks joins a cast that also includes Ewan McGregor, Helena Bonham-Carter and Monty Python’s Terry Jones. Which is a little weird, because Jones died four years ago.

Sadly, Jones passed away in 2020 at the age of 77 from complications associated with a rare form of dementia, known as Ftd.

As per an exclusive via Variety, the exciting upcoming animated project, The Land of Sometimes, has added two major stars to its already impressive ensemble. Hollywood icon Mel Brooks, the 98-year-old Egot winner, and Sex Education's Asa Butterfield will join the likes of Star Wars' Ewan McGregor, The Crown and Harry Potter's Helena Bonham Carter, Matilda: The Musical's Alisha Weir, and Glass Onion's Jessica Henwick in a stacked cast. Most poignantly, the film will feature one of the final performances of the iconic Terry Jones - the Monty Python genius behind some of the funniest movies of all time - following his sad passing in 2020. The logline for the film reads as follows:...

Comedy legend Mel Brooks and “Sex Education” star Asa Butterfield have joined the voice cast of the upcoming animated feature “The Land of Sometimes.”

Based on an original audiobook by Francesca Longrigg with a screenplay by Tony Nottage, “The Land of Sometimes” follows twins Alfie and Elise as they embark on adventures with mystical creatures after being transported to a magical island by the Wish Collector. The story explores themes of family and self-discovery.

Brooks and Butterfield join the previously revealed cast that includes Ewan McGregor (“Obi-Wan Kenobi”), Helena Bonham Carter (“The Crown”), Alisha Weir (“Matilda: The Musical”) and Jessica Henwick (“Glass Onion”). The film also features one of the final performances from the late “Monty Python” alum Terry Jones.

Leon Joosen (“Saving Santa”) is directing the project. The film is from Two Daughters Entertainment and Nottage Productions. Bonnie Arnold (“How to Train Your Dragon”) and Alan Yentob (“Billy Elliot...

Eric Idle and John Cleese’s recent social media feud garnered a lot of attention from fans, but it’s far from the first time that the two Monty Python members squabbled. As one resurfaced interview clip illustrates, their behind-the-scenes tension goes back decades, and once involved an argument over drinking urine.

One of the most infamous lost Python sketches is “Wee-Wee Wine Tasting,” which was filmed for the Season Three episode “E. Henry Thripshaw's Disease” but ultimately cut from the broadcast. As Idle recalled in the 1990 documentary Life of Python, the sketch, which he wrote with Michael Palin, found a refined gentleman visiting a wine cellar, and taking guesses as to the contents of his glass (Pouilly Fumé? Médoc?) only to be constantly informed that the wine is, in fact, “wee-wee.”

While most members of the Pythons got behind the “very silly” sketch, Cleese was vehemently opposed to it and,...

Although somewhat tame by today’s standards, when Monty Python’s Life of Brian was released in 1979, it was considered to be among the most offensive — and blasphemous — films ever made. While no strangers to controversy, Monty Python faced a backlash like never before with their third film, in which they relentlessly mocked organized religion via a biblical epic parody about a man named Brian who is mistaken for the messiah just because he’s Jesus’ neighbor.

Forty-five years after its initial release, Life of Brian is still regarded as a classic, and many consider it to be the best, most sophisticated work the Pythons ever did. Here’s how it all came about, how angry it made everybody and why it’s stood the test of time…

45 Jesus Christ: Lust for Glory

Life of Brian was first conceived when the Pythons were on the publicity tour for Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

I think it's fair to say that Monty Python movies, much like the TV show from which they sprung, are all great. The absurdist brilliance of "Monty Python's Flying Circus," which ran on the BBC from 1969 to 1974, saw comedians John Cleese, Eric Idle, Graham Chapman, Terry Jones, Michael Palin, and Terry Gilliam rewrite the rules of comedy. Alongside regular collaborators Carol Cleveland and Connie Booth, the Monty Python troupe established themselves as true comedic geniuses, leading to a run of feature films that remain just as beloved to this day as the "Flying Circus" itself.

Chief among those films is 1975's "Monty Python and the Holy Grail," a deconstruction of the British national identity by way of an irreverent retelling of Arthurian legend. The film was and is much more than its oft-quoted catchphrases would suggest, with the Python boys turning their subversive eye towards British history and sending up...