Time Bandits’ First Trailer Teases a Whole New Time-Twisting Adventure

Apple TV+ has released a trailer for its upcoming ten-episode Time Bandits TV series from Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi. Much like Terry Gilliam’s original film, the story concerns a British child named Kevin (played here by Kal-El Tuck–not Nicolas Cage’s son, Kal-El Coppola Cage–a different Kal-El…) who follows an “eccentric crew of bandits” as they “embark on epic adventures while evil forces threaten their conquests, and life as they know it.” Take a look: 

There’s no familiar faces from the original this time, with the titular bandits now being played instead by a veritable cast including Lisa Kudrow, Tadhg Murphy, Roger Jean Nsengiyumva, Rune Temte, Charlyne Yi, and more. Also of note, co-showrunner Jemaine Clement has taken over the role of “Evil” from the late, great David Warner, opposite Taika Waititi as the “Supreme Being”–a role originally played by stage actor Ralph Richardson.

According to the press release, Time Bandits: The Series will see our heroes “transported through time and space” as they “stumble upon fascinating worlds of the distant past while seeking out treasure, depending on Kevin to shed light on each situation. The “Time Bandits” witness the creation of Stonehenge, see the Trojan Horse in action, escape dinosaurs in the prehistoric ages, wreak havoc during medieval times, experience the Ice Age, ancient civilizations and the Harlem Renaissance, and much more along the way” — so that will also be a departure from the events of the original.

How to you feel about the trailer? Is the new cast a step backward, or a step forward? Do you think its use of “Roam” by The B-52’s is better than its use in the similar-but-with-puppies Treasure Buddies? More importantly, do you believe Kevin’s parents still explode from touching concentrated evil at the end?

Apple TV+’s Time Bandits premieres Wednesday, July 24 with two episodes, where it will then continue airing two new episodes every week after.