Terry Gilliam Opens Up

Truth is so important, and what’s even more important than truth is to not lie, even if you don’t tell all the truth. Don’t lie. And there’s so much of it out there. It’s this false world has been created and, wait a minute, you have to understand the world you’re in, particularly… I mean, I’ve always been unfortunately too politically motivated. In fact, while you’re all buying your iPods and everything, weren’t you paying attention to what’s going on in the world financially, economically? Don’t you understand the cost of what all these goodies are going to cost? I suppose that’s what it’s always been about. I mean, I don’t want to hide this stuff because I think the truth is actually much more interesting. I remember in college when I… for a brief period, I was in a fraternity, because that’s what you do, isn’t it? And I remember when rush season was on, and it was Sigma Alpha Epsilon, and all the freshmen were coming in, and you’re supposed to be saying “This is the best house, and these guys are really cool,” and it’s all puff stuff. It’s all like being agents in Hollywood. And I would go around with a sign saying “Truth Spoken Here”. You can ask me anything you want, I’ll tell you the truth. And that’s what I did. And the other fraternities hated me. Let’s just do it, come on. You want the truth, I’ll tell you. If you don’t want the truth, don’t ask me. Talk to him over there. That’s all.

Terry Gilliam opening up to Drew McWeeny at Comic-Con. It’s a fascinating read. Part One is here. Part Two is here.