Much to the dismay of Monty Python diehards, John Cleese is taking a holy hand grenade to “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life” for his stage adaptation of the 1979 film Life of Brian. The reason? The song, arguably the classic Python comedy’s most famous, is “too predictable” for today’s audiences. When Life of Brian hit theaters nearly a half-century ago, “People thought it was hilarious, they screamed with laughter,” Cleese told The Mail on Sunday. “Well, nobody is going to be shocked now—the joke is 40 years old.” Eric Idle, a fellow Python, questioned Cleese’s decision to cut the number when it was first reported last month, tweeting that he had “nothing at all to do” with the new adaptation. Speaking to The Mail, Cleese retorted, “Eric is very keen to use the song because of course he gets all the royalties from it, and we don’t get any. People do love the song, but do we want to end with something that’s completely predictable?”
Read it at The Mail on Sunday
