Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
Arts & Entertainment
Is Director Terry Gilliam Working On Paul Auster Adaptation?
By
Jamie Feldmar
Published Jul 28, 2011
Modified Jul 28, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jamie Feldmar
Published Jul 28, 2011
Modified Jul 28, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Fans of the fantastically twisted brain of director Terry Gilliam, who's been laying relatively low since the 2009 release of The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus and last year's Arcade Fire concert, tentatively rejoice! The auteur has announced plans to bring New York author Paul Auster's Mr. Vertigo to the big screen. Maybe.
"I got a book. It's called Mr. Vertigo by Paul Auster. And I'm actually working on a script of it at the moment. Doesn't mean it will be a film; but I'm working on a script," he said at a Q&A at Era New Horizons Film Festival. The 1995 book follows the misadventures of a Depression-era boy who learns to levitate and joins the circus, traveling the country with a mysterious master, which sounds just about right for a Gilliam flick.
Of course, fanboys and girls are jumping all over the news, with cautious optimism: "We’d like to say we’re doing back-flips over the news...it’s hard to fathom Auster didn’t infiltrate Gilliam’s imagination like some kind of brain bandit and lift the concept straight out the director’s left-brain grey matter. But we’ve been burned by Gilliam too many times recently to allow ourselves to raise our hopes too high," writes Word & Film, referencing Gilliam's history of failed projects. And other directors have circled the project as well, though not in years, so this might very well be the perfect time for Gilliam to swoop in and dazzle audiences like he did with Brazil and Twelve Monkeys all those years ago.
Tagged
director
film
movies
mr. vertigo
paul auster
terry gilliam
Jamie Feldmar
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE arts-entertainment
Will Barnes and Noble in the East Village spell doom for smaller shops? It's complicated.
Independent booksellers are grappling with whether the big-box chain is a threat or an ally in the fight against Amazon.
By
Sonia Rao
Published Oct 16, 2026
Can eligible NYC singles find love with 30 minutes and some really spicy food?
We went to the Spiciest Supper Club singles night to take the temperature of New York City's dating scene.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
Arts & Entertainment
Can eligible NYC singles find love with 30 minutes and some really spicy food?
We went to the Spiciest Supper Club singles night to take the temperature of New York City's dating scene.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
James Ramsay
How the NYC Marathon has changed in the last 50 years
By
Hannah Frishberg
A visit to Art of Play, the Brooklyn store in an animatronic bird beef with Kelly Clarkson
By
Sonia Rao
The hottest way to show you're an authentic New Yorker is… riding a Citi Bike?
By
Lindsay Lee Wallace
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .