- Big budget show had favourable reviews but didn’t convert into huge viewing figures
- Show was a remake of the 1981 cult classic movie of the same name by Terry Gilliam
- Lisa Kudrow starred while Jermaine Clement, Iain Morris and Taika Waititi wrote the show
The adventure is at an end: Time Bandits is no more as Apple TV+ has cancelled it after just one season.
The show, an adaptation of the cult classic 1981 movie by Terry Gilliam, was released last month. Two episodes dropped each week for five weeks.
Strong cast
Time Bandits had a strong cast, led by ex-Friends star Lisa Kudrow. Its creators included Jermaine Clement, Iain Morris and Taika Waititi. All three creators wrote the scripts while Morris and Clement acted as showrunners.
The show had mostly favourable reviews when it was released but didn’t back this up with viewers – it didn’t make it into Neilson’s Top 10 Streaming rankings on any weeks where new episodes were released.
Recent cancellations
While no definitive reason for the cancellation of the series has been given, it is likely that its relatively poor viewer numbers will have been part of the reason. Streaming services have been looking for strong viewer numbers before recommissioning a show. Some high-profile shows have been axed recently for this season, such as The Acolyte.
The axing of The Acolyte was met with dismay from many online commentators. The response to the cancellation of Time Bandits has been more muted, but nevertheless fans were disappointed.
Apple TV+ had acquired the rights for a series adaptation of Time Bandits six years ago. Development took some time, but there were high hopes for it. The show focused on Kevin, who finds a time egress in his wardrobe. There he meets the titular bandits and goes on a series of epic adventures seeking out treasure and avoiding evil forces.
